


Secret Love

by hockeylvr59 (gleefanatic)



Series: Secret Love/Honest Love [1]
Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-10-18
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:28:56
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 25
Words: 74,849
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25563619
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gleefanatic/pseuds/hockeylvr59
Relationships: Cale Makar/Reader
Series: Secret Love/Honest Love [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1992217
Comments: 10
Kudos: 40





	1. Chapter 1

“Sara’s pregnant.”

No sentence had ever made you feel anger, fear, disbelief, sadness and a whole bevy of other emotions quite as quickly as that one did. You wanted to scream and you wanted to cry. Instead, you put a mask over your expressions and just took the glass of wine Laura was offering as she filled hers to the brim.

“What?” You whispered, your voice cracking slightly.

“Cale called me today…he was so obviously nervous and before I could even ask what was wrong he was rambling on about how she was pregnant and he didn’t know what to do…” You could see the disappointment on Laura’s face and you attempted to send her a reassuring smile, though you were sure she noticed how forced it seemed. Swirling your wine in your glass, you thought about all of the reasons this news bothered you, making you almost sick to your stomach.

Your mom had been friends with Laura Makar for as long as you could remember. You couldn’t really remember much about their friendship when you were really little but when you were four and a half, Laura had Cale. And ever since then…he had been yours. When he was just a baby he was practically your baby doll, but as he got older he became the person you could turn to for anything. Where Cale went, you went, and vice versa. People often suggested that he was like a brother to you because of the age gap but you’d never thought of him that way. He was one of the closest friends you had and that was that. And even though you weren’t as close now as you had once been, you were still hurt that you’d heard it from Laura and not Cale himself.

You’d only met Sara on a handful of occasions. Cale had met her shortly before he headed off to UMASS for college and they had started up a long-distance relationship very quickly. When you’d first met Sara you’d thought she was sweet, but over the past three years, you’d grown more suspicious of her motivations when it came to your best friend. At first, you had just chalked up the feelings to being an outsider to their relationship, after all, Cale seemed happy enough and you had no reason to dislike Sara. But then Cale had made the NHL and suddenly all of your suspicions were proven true.

Sara had moved to Denver, claiming she wanted to be closer to Cale. Now you knew she just wanted to be closer to Cale’s network and the benefits it could provide her to be seen on his arm. You’d followed her on Instagram since they started dating and it was clear she had forgotten because when Cale was on the road, specifically when he was in the middle of a game, stories would pop up where she was dressed provocatively, men’s hands all over her body. By the time the game ended, she’d taken them down. You kept your mouth shut the first two times because you didn’t want to be the kind of person that butts into someone’s relationship. But when a third showed up, with a man’s hand placed precariously close to her pelvis you’d decided you’d had enough. Still, you didn’t tell Cale, instead you dm’ed Sara confronting her on her actions. She’d just sent a laughing emoji back before quickly blocking you. But thanks to a secondary profile and her lack of private status, you knew that she was still very much cheating.

Looking across the table at Laura, you could tell she had suspicions of her own even if she hadn’t seen the visual proof you did. In that moment, you made up your mind that you had to talk to Cale.

“This is not what we wanted for him.” Laura sighed, blinking back tears as she battled with the weight of the news.

It killed you to see her so upset because while Cale had never been like a brother, Laura had absolutely become your second mom. After graduating college, you’d found a job locally at a real estate firm and settled into your own place, completely on your own for the very first time. Just a few weeks later, your parents announced that they were moving back east to Ontario. Unable to turn to your own mom whenever you needed help or advice, you found yourself turning to Laura and she had quickly become your closest confidant. Now, when you needed to unwind with a glass of wine, you made your way to the Makar residence and Laura’s warm arms.

You didn’t know what to say or what to do, so you just sat with her, holding her hand as she cried and downed glasses of wine until Gary had to carry her up to bed.

Promising that you were alright to drive and hadn’t had much as she had, you headed back to your apartment, your own tears finally falling once you were completely alone. You didn’t sleep much that night, instead choosing to scroll through all of the photos of you and Cale that you had on your phone, thinking over all of the memories the two of you had shared. You’d pretended you hadn’t heard it, but as Gary worked to get Laura up and to bed she had definitely slurred that she’d always thought it would be you having her grandchildren. And though you’d long told yourself that harboring a crush on Cale was a waste of energy to the point that you hardly thought of him that way, the knowledge that someone else was even potentially (because you weren’t fully convinced) having his baby caused your heart to start to crack.

Since sleep was hard to come by, you found yourself staring at the contact list in your phone at six am, running over what you were going to tell Cale when you worked up the courage to call him. Somehow, you managed to hold off until around 9 am when you knew Cale would normally be on his way to the rink.

As the phone rang once…twice…three times, you felt your breath catch in your throat. Then you heard Cale’s voice, scratchier than normal like he had either just woken up or had been crying. Just like that, everything you had been planning to say for hours just vanished from your brain.

“You need to have a paternity test done.” The words came out quickly and automatically.

“What the hell Y/N?” Cale questioned and you knew you had taken him off guard.

“Sara has been cheating on you. When you’re in the middle of a game she’ll post stories with other guy’s hands all over her and then delete it when the game ends. I didn’t want to get in the middle of it but a month and a half or so ago I confronted her on it and she blocked me. I…you deserve to know there’s a possibility the baby isn’t yours.”

“How did you even…? Oh, that’s right you’re besties with my mom now. This isn’t any of your business Y/N so just stay the hell out of it okay?” His voice was sarcastic and harsh, two tones you’d never heard him use before and the moment he finished speaking he hung up.

You had probably just ruined everything but…you couldn’t not say something.

And well…not having him in your life anymore couldn’t be any worse than having to see him doting on Sara and his child right?

Canceling your appointments for the day, you turned your phone off and crawled into bed wishing that you had multiple bottles of wine you could use to drown away the pain from the ice pick Cale had just shoved in your fractured heart.


	2. Chapter 2

The only way you could handle the fact the Cale was apparently going to be a dad was to just not think about it. Most of the time that was easy enough. You went to work, came home, put on a new Netflix show that you were binging, and then went to bed. It did feel weird to not put the Avs games on because you hadn’t not watched since he first broke into the league, but you had turned game notifications off on your phone so most days you weren’t even sure if it was a game day or not. Having taken those efforts, you managed to avoid the nagging thoughts that made tears prick at your eyes for two entire weeks. 

And then the folly of your plan finally hit. 

Laura Makar called and invited you over for dinner for her birthday. And as much as you wanted to continue to live in denial, you knew that it would mean the world to her to have you there. After everything she’d done for you, you just couldn’t deny her. 

Dinner had started with conversations about your work, and with where Gary was taking Laura for a weekend birthday getaway. Sitting and watching the two of them, you couldn’t help but hope that someday you could have a relationship like theirs, like your own parents. It was a nice thought, though one that at the moment seemed somewhat unattainable. 

As you finished the food on your plate, however, conversation shifted to the trip Laura and Gary were planning to go down and see Cale at the end of next week while he was on a significant homestand. 

“You should come with us.” Laura insisted, and for a moment you were certain you looked like a deer in headlights. 

“Work is really busy right now. I don’t think I can get away.” Laura’s eyebrows raised as she sent you that disbelieving motherly look that you knew far too well. 

“Didn’t your mom just tell me that you have time off you need to take before you lose it?” Laura questioned, her tone accusatory. Vainly you tried to hide the flush in your cheeks that would tell her that what she’d said was in fact true. Sensing that this conversation was not one he wanted to be a part of, Gary gathered up the dishes and moved to the kitchen to clean up from dinner, leaving you alone with his wife. 

“What’s going on Y/N…you’ve never turned down a trip to go see Cale play.” 

“I just don’t think it’s a good idea…” You trailed off, trying to be vague. All of the hurt and pain that you’d been trying to ignore was slowly returning and it was only a matter of time before it spilled over. “I just think maybe this should be a family only trip.” You suggested, doing your best to cover your own ass praying that Laura wouldn’t start asking too many questions. 

“Is this about Sara?” Laura asked, her expression now showing that she knew there was something that you hadn’t told her. 

“In a way…” You whispered, staring at the water in your glass like it would suddenly make you disappear or something. “I just…I don’t think Cale would want me there.” You declared, shaking your head as you excused yourself from the table. “I need to use the bathroom.” 

In the relative safety of the Makar’s powder room, you took a minute to splash water onto your face, trying to calm the rushing of your heartbeat. It didn’t work and after a moment you left the room knowing you couldn’t hide out all night and would probably have to explain. Heading back to the kitchen, you were stopped by Laura’s voice as she murmured for you to join her on the couch in the living room. 

“Sweetheart…why wouldn’t Cale want you there? You’re one of his best friends…I know it’s been a rough couple weeks but…” 

“We uh…we aren’t speaking…well he isn’t speaking to me.” You mumbled, your palms rubbing against the fabric of your jeans. Laura didn’t speak, instead her eyes fell on you with concern, waiting for you to elaborate. And you did because those mom eyes were powerful even if she wasn’t your mom. Plus you’d been holding it all in and your head needed you to tell someone in order for you to truly process it yourself. 

You told her about the instagram stories, about confronting Sara over cheating on Cale and then finally your conversation with her son as a result of all of it. 

“You knew Sara had been cheating on him when I told you she was pregnant and you didn’t tell me?” She questioned, a flicker of hurt crossing her face. 

“I…I thought it was the right thing to do.” You admitted. “I could see you had your own suspicions and if I had told you I know you would have called him right then and there.” Taking a deep breath, you shook your head and let out a sad sigh. “And…and clearly this is the type of thing that can ruin relationships and I didn’t want that for you…for Cale.” You finally explained. “I didn’t want there to be a wedge between the two of you because he’s your son and if the baby was his he’d need his mom…” By the time you finished speaking your voice was shaking and the occasional tear was streaking down your cheek. 

“So you decided to risk a 21 year friendship instead?” She mused, her voice displaying just an iota of awe as she shifted to wrap her arms around you, pulling you into a hug. “You are so selfless sometimes that it amazes me Y/N…” She breathed. “It is one of your greatest strengths but also one of your biggest flaws.” 

Her hands rubbed over your back as she let you cry out all of the stress and pain you’d been feeling. When you’d finished crying, she handed you a tissue and rested her hand on your knee. 

“So now that you’ve told me the real reasons why you don’t want to come…maybe I can actually change your mind…” Laura urged, a soft smile on her face. “First…I can promise you that my son doesn’t hate you. Not only do I not believe that Cale has the ability to hate anyone, even if he did there is no way that after all these years he would be able to toss away how much you mean to him.”

“I…you didn’t hear his voice.” You mumbled. 

“You’re right, I didn’t…but you’re just going to have to take my word on this.” She insisted. 

It wasn’t the promise that Cale didn’t hate you that had you agreeing to use your vacation days to join her and Gary on a trip to Denver. You were still terrified that Cale would be angry when you showed up at his door with his parents. And it was one thing to have him hang up on you, it was another entirely to be in the same place and have to endure looks that clearly said ‘you’re not welcome here.’ 

No, it definitely wasn’t that promise…it was what Laura revealed to you next, her hand rubbing your knee. 

“Cale broke up with Sara.” 

“What?” You exclaimed softly, as if the concept was so unbelievable. 

“He called again last week…I guess the day after you would have called him she was over at his place and left her phone face up on the counter. It went off while he was walking by and he saw a text that read something to the effect of ‘when were you going to tell me you’re pregnant with my kid?’. He confronted her about it, told her that he wanted a paternity test done. I guess at that point she fessed up to the cheating and he broke up with her. Told her if the baby was his he’d take responsibility, but that he’d never be able to trust her again so they were done as a couple.” 

You felt waves of relief crash over you at the news. Even if Cale hated you for interfering in his life, at least he now had the truth and hopefully that alone would bring him closure and eventual happiness. He deserves someone who is faithful to him and who can bring out that smile that makes his eyes crinkle with delight. 

Even with the knowledge of that news, Laura was still trying to convince you to make the trip, up until the point where you were gathering things to walk out the door. You’d been slipping on your coat when her phone buzzed and suddenly she let out a huge sigh. 

“Hey Y/N…” She called and when you turned to face her she handed you the phone, a message still lit on the screen. “You’re coming to Denver.” She insisted, and as your eyes glazed over the words you finally nodded in agreement. 

_The baby’s not mine._


	3. Chapter 3

The news that Cale wasn’t the dad sent a wave of emotion through you that you couldn’t define. In the days following, it almost felt like something you had dreamed but Laura’s texts regarding flight information for the trip and weather forecasts for packing were daily reminders that it was all a reality, albeit a confusing one. 

You still hadn’t talked to Cale, not even via text, since the disastrous phone call. You also had no idea whether Laura had told him you were coming or not. So while you were normally a calm flyer, this time you couldn’t help the anxiety that bubbled up, stemming from the fear of how Cale would react to seeing you. 

Because Cale had practice and then a film session to attend, the plan was to just meet him at his apartment upon arrival. As you sat in the backseat of the rental Gary had obtained, you watched as the mountains of Denver rolled past the window. It wasn’t long before he had pulled into an underground parking garage and you were gathering your things to head inside. Tired from the flight and distracted by the stress you were feeling, you didn’t even notice that the only thing Gary grabbed was his wallet, while Laura just grabbed her purse. 

The building you entered was modern and sleek but yet homey. You followed Laura and Gary to the elevator which took you up to the fourth floor. A short walk down the hall had you standing in front of apartment 429 and Gary knocked on the wooden door. When it swung open a moment later, Cale’s tall frame was immediately wrapping around his mom’s as he slowly walked backward, pulling her inside. 

After a moment he pulled away and hugged his dad as well. It wasn’t until they had pulled apart that his eyes fell on you and you instantly knew that your presence had not been announced in advance. Still, he pulled you into his arms, likely for his mom’s sake and it took everything in you not to break into tears as the scent of him reached your nostrils. You had missed everything about him, and it was hitting you harder than you could have ever imagined. 

Breaking the hug, you stepped off to the side and focused your attention on the details of Cale’s apartment while Laura and Gary chatted with their son. The kitchen was filled with dark cabinets, granite countertops, and a large island. Beyond that was a living room with a sectional couch and a big screen tv. 

“…I was thinking Y/N could stay here and crash on your couch…” Your head snapped to attention at the sound of your name and you watched Cale rub the back of his neck as he nodded in agreement to whatever his mom was saying. 

“Great. Then your mom and I are going to go check into the hotel and we can text about meeting up for dinner.” Gary declared, his hand reaching out to clap Cale on the shoulder before guiding Laura back toward the door. 

“Wait…what?” The words didn’t manage to fall from your mouth until Laura and Gary were gone, leaving you standing in Cale’s kitchen. Slowly your brain pieced together the snippets of conversation and you were certain a look of horror crossed your face. Cale’s expression was unreadable as he watched you and you frantically reached for your phone. 

“I’m so sorry…I…I didn’t know your mom was going to drop me on you like this…I’ll uh…I’ll just call an uber and find myself a hotel…” You babbled, certain that this was the last thing Cale would want. “I…I told her that I shouldn’t even come on this trip but…” You were cut off as Cale gently tugged your phone from your fingers and set it on the island. 

“Woah…hey…my couch is your couch.” He insisted. “I uh…I don’t mind okay.” Looking up his eyes were soft, his expression one of shame and nervousness as he gazed at you. “Breathe Y/N.” He continued. Eventually you were able to copy the rise and fall of his chest with your own breathing. Still, the pit in the bottom of your stomach insisted that he couldn’t possibly want you here, not after everything. 

“I can get a hotel room seriously.” You murmured. “Your mom doesn’t even have to know. I know you hate me so me being here probably is the last thing you want…” 

“You think I hate you…” The way Cale’s voice broke revealed the hurt he felt at that accusation. “Fuck.” He mumbled, his hands suddenly reaching out to pull you firmly against his chest. “Y/N…I could never hate you.” Cale spoke softly but honestly and you bit your lip to hide the tears. “You’re my best friend and I…of course I want you here.” His chest shook with shaky breaths and he kissed the top of your head gently. 

“If you don’t want to stay, then okay I’ll drive you to a hotel myself but please…please don’t think that I don’t want you here.” He eventually added. “I…I know I fucked up and I’m the one that should be apologizing. This past month has been a mess and I owe you an explanation. Just…just stay and give me a chance to make it up to you.” With each word, you felt yourself going weaker in his arms and as your body sagged against him, he sighed, pulling your bag off of your shoulder to let it gently fall to the floor. “God I missed you…” He whispered into your hair. “It’s been too long.” 

It wasn’t long before your tears broke loose, quickly soaking into his shirt. “Shit.” He whispered, fingers now carding through your hair. “Sunshine…don’t cry.” When you’d finally cried yourself out, Cale cupped your cheeks and brushed at the tear stains with his thumbs. A look at the clock on the stove showed that it had been 45 minutes since you’d arrived already and that it was already almost dinner time. Like they’d read your mind, Cale’s phone was buzzing next to yours on the island and he murmured that it was his mom wondering about dinner. 

“Should I tell her we’ll meet them in like 45?” He questioned, and you shrugged in response, honestly too emotionally exhausted to be making any decisions. “Y/N…” Cale pressed, his eyes raking over you once more. 

“Yeah that’s fine.” You agreed, just trying to regain full control of your shaking body. 

“That wasn’t what I was going to ask.” Cale continued. “Are…are we good?” His voice was nervous as he asked. “I…we can sit and talk after dinner.” He promised. You were still drowning in your own emotions so you just sent him a weak smile and a nod. 

“I need to clean up.” You declared and immediately Cale responded with an ‘of course’ before showing you into his master bathroom. 45 minutes wasn’t enough time for a shower, but it was enough for you to change clothes, attempt to hide your red eyes with some makeup and to do something with your hair quickly. By the time you exited the bathroom, Cale had changed from a t-shirt and sweats into jeans and a polo, tennis shoes on his feet. 

“You ready?” He handed you your phone as he reached for his keys and when you nodded, his free hand slipped into yours as he led you down to his car. “We’re picking up mom and dad and then we’ll head to the restaurant. There’s this great little Italian place I know you’ll love.” He explained. With his statement that you were picking up Laura and Gary, you moved to climb into the backseat, earning a sharp look from Cale. “You can take the passenger seat.” He mused, going as far as to open the door for you before releasing your hand to let you climb inside. As soon as he had pulled out of the garage, his hand found yours again and as he drove to the hotel he rambled on about how he couldn’t wait to introduce you to the team and what you would likely think of each member of the Avs. 

Though you wore a smile, it definitely wasn’t genuine, that ball of insecurity over everything still causing you to hesitate in all of your responses. You and Cale definitely needed to talk about what had happened, otherwise this was going to be a supremely uncomfortable trip. 

As you approached the hotel, Cale released your hand so that his mom wouldn’t start asking a million questions. You knew it was the right move, but you couldn’t help but miss the warmth of his hand in yours. 

Dinner was delicious, as you ate you watched as Cale talked with his dad about the team, and his mom about things he still needed to get for his apartment even after all this time. There was still something preventing you from fully relaxing, but you tried, laughing when appropriate and engaging in conversation so as to not draw attention to yourself. When the check was delivered, Cale refused to let anyone else even think about grabbing it. After that, it wasn’t long before you had dropped his parents off for the night and were returning to his apartment with plans for Laura to pick you up in the morning to go shopping while Cale had morning skate and Gary went to watch. 

The moment Cale’s apartment door closed behind the two of you, you felt the weight of everything rush back over you. Without saying anything, you grabbed your bag and moved to change into pajamas, washing the makeup off of your face. As you padded back to the living room, you were met with Cale handing you a glass of hot chocolate as he motioned for you to join him on the couch. 

“I’m sorry I was such a jackass. There’s nothing that can excuse the way I treated you.” He immediately started to apologize, his right hand tugging your left into his grip once more as though he needed the physical connection. “Those were three days I’d like to never relive and I should have reached out sooner.” 

“Cale…I understand…” You mumbled, not sure why you were trying to cut him off if you were completely honest. 

“No…no you don’t understand.” He interrupted. “I know you think I was angry with you for getting involved because of what I said, but that wasn’t it at all…” Cale explained. “I don’t really understand what your motivations were…but that doesn’t matter.” He continued. 

“I don’t know if I fully understand my own motivations.” You mumbled under your breath, but it was loud enough that Cale heard at least part of it. 

“What?” He prompted you to continue and you sighed. 

“I…I can’t even describe how I felt hearing that news.” You whispered. “But I already knew she had cheated and I could see on your mom’s face that she was skeptical about everything as well…I guess a large part of it was taking the news directly to you before she found out and did the same…I just…she’s your mom and I didn’t want anything to destroy that relationship.” You weren’t sure you were making any sense but Cale brushed his thumb over the back of your hand, a sign of silent acceptance. 

“You took me off guard.” He added after a moment. “I’m honestly not sure why, I think deep down I was expecting you to call with some reaction.” Cale sipped at his drink as he tried to formulate his thoughts. “For the record…I love that you’re friends with my mom.” His expression was now a grin as he peeked over at you. “I’m not a huge fan of you using that friendship to gang up on me, but I love it.” He paused once again, letting out another sigh. “So I’m sorry for being sarcastic about that because of course my mom told you, _I_ should have told you. I guess…I guess I thought if I didn’t tell you then it wasn’t real. Telling my mom was an impulse.” A part of you understood that completely and hearing his reasoning made all of those negative feelings dissipate a little. 

“But again…I wasn’t mad at you for saying something like I know you think I was.” Cale returned the conversation to that aspect of things and you bit your lip as you listened. “If I was mad…it was at myself.” His admission came with the release of such a deep breath that you knew this was the first time he was going down this line of thought in his own mind. “I know speaking up wasn’t easy for you, I know you’ve tried to stay out of my relationship all of these years even though I’m sure you’ve had plenty of things to say and I’m grateful for all of it. For the times you stayed silent and let me make my own mistakes and for speaking up when I truly needed you to.” His squeeze of your hand signaled that he wasn’t done and to just bear with him a moment. 

“I know I seemed mad at you, but I swear I was really only mad at myself.” Cale repeated, clearly struggling with everything he wanted to say. “I knew the baby wasn’t mine. I knew that the moment she told me she was pregnant.” Your eyebrows jumped up at this confession and Cale chuckled to himself awkwardly. “I didn’t want to believe that she had cheated, but I can’t really say I’m surprised.” Cale’s cheeks were now a rosy red, and you squeezed his hand in return this time hoping it would help him open up with whatever he was clearly holding back. “I can count on one hand the number of times she and I had sex.” The flush on his cheeks deepened if that was even possible and you felt something twist in your stomach at the implication of his words. “I can count on one hand and the last time was probably 2 months before she told me she was pregnant. So I mean yeah I guess there was a chance…but it seemed unlikely that she was what 10 weeks pregnant and just then finding out…” 

“Oh…” You murmured, even more confused and intrigued. You had tried so hard not to think about Cale’s sex life that having it placed right in front of you was definitely messing with your mind a little. 

“So yeah…I guess when you called and immediately told me I needed to have a paternity test done I was frustrated that I hadn’t already taken that step myself. I just…I guess I was worried I looked like a complete fuck up in your eyes and if I’m honest, disappointing you is worse than disappointing my mom.” Moving to drink from your mug, you realized it had turned cold and so you just set it on the coffee table before releasing Cale’s hand to reach out to brush your hand through his hair. 

“I was never disappointed in you…” You breathed. “In the circumstances, maybe…but never in you.” With your fingers now teasing the back of his neck you bit your lip before speaking. “I’m sorry for taking you off guard…that wasn’t how I intended to start the call but I…everything I had wanted to say flew out the window when I heard your voice for some reason.” The way Cale was looking at you was something you couldn’t place and you shook your head to clear your thoughts. 

“So you’re sorry and I accept your apologies, and I’m sorry so hopefully you can accept mine and we can try and put all of it behind us?” You suggested. 

“You have nothing to be sorry for, so yes.” Cale agreed, and feeling the urge to hug him you shifted to face him, pulling your body tight against his. The two of you stayed that way for a while before Cale finally pulled back with a yawn. “It’s getting late and I do have a game tomorrow so time for bed?” He offered. 

“Yep…just get me a pillow and a blanket and I’m all set.” You concurred suddenly feeling exhausted from not only the flight, but the range of emotions you’d faced. For a moment you thought Cale was going to say something, his hand falling to your hip, but then he nodded and pushed himself off of the couch, disappearing into his room. After bringing you a pillow and blanket, Cale kissed your forehead and whispered goodnight telling you to bug him if you needed anything. 

As you settled down and attempted to sleep, one thought lingered in your mind. 

Why didn’t Cale have sex with his girlfriend more often? 

You wanted to smack yourself because that truly was none of your business but as affectionate as Cale was with you, you’d always assumed his physical relationship with her was quite healthy. 

With him sleeping, likely at least shirtless, only a few feet away, you had a feeling that you were going to need a cold shower in the morning. That was…if you even managed to sleep at all considering the forbidden thoughts occupying your mind. 


	4. Chapter 4

You’d tossed and turned for almost an hour before you had eventually drifted off to sleep, only to be awoken by the Denver sunrise spilling through the window. Groaning softly you made a mental note for the shopping trip…curtains…Cale definitely needed curtains. Laying on the couch, you played on your phone for a few minutes before the need to use the bathroom finally took over. 

After knocking quietly on Cale’s door with no response, you cracked it open hoping to sneak through to the bathroom without disturbing him. As you tiptoed across his bedroom floor, you couldn’t help but let your eyes fall on him. As expected, he was shirtless, blankets falling only midway up his exposed chest. His hair was a mess, and a relaxed expression covered his face. Quietly closing the bathroom door behind you, you chastised yourself for the heat that flooded through you. You were just friends and despite his now single status, that was all this was ever going to be. 

Relieving yourself, you then quickly brushed your teeth before quietly moving back to the living room, easing his door shut behind you. His parents were going to be here in about an hour and after starting a pot of coffee you examined the contents of Cale’s fridge and cabinets. Finding bacon, eggs, and pancake mix you decided to make everyone breakfast. It was as you were moving around the kitchen that Cale finally appeared, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. 

“You’re making breakfast?” He murmured, leaning in to kiss the top of your head. 

“I am…” You smiled, checking on the bacon in the oven as you scrambled eggs in a pan on the stove. Cale poured himself a cup of coffee and you felt his eyes on you once more. 

“Anything I can do?” He questioned after a moment. 

“Get some plates?” You requested. “How do you want your eggs?” The clatter of plates filled your ears for a moment as Cale set plates beside you. 

“However you’re making them is perfect.” He insisted, sharing a warm grin now that he was a little bit more awake. Nodding you took one of the plates and scooped a hefty portion of eggs onto it before pulling the bacon from the oven and the pancakes from where they were keeping warm in the microwave and piling those onto the plate as well. 

“Eat up.” You grinned, turning to place the plate in front of one of the bar stools at the island. Doing another batch of eggs quickly you set everything aside to keep warm before serving yourself a much smaller portion. Taking a seat beside him, you shook your head as you watched Cale continue to dig into his breakfast. The moment felt a little too domestic and natural so you were thankful when there was a knock at the door that signaled that Laura and Gary had arrived. 

It wasn’t long after that before you were quickly getting ready and heading out with Laura to go shopping for things for Cale’s apartment. The first place you stopped was Starbucks and then you were off to a local shopping center to do some damage. 

“You seem more relaxed…” Laura mentioned as she sat waiting for the light to turn green. 

“Yeah uh…we talked after dinner last night. We’re good.” You shrugged. Yes you were close with Laura, but you really didn’t want to tell her the details of your friendship with her son. She seemed to accept that because she nodded and smiled. 

“Good. I’m glad.” Her response ended the subject and instead she focused on the task ahead. “So you’ve spent a decent amount of time in Cale’s apartment…what does he still need other than what he mentioned to me?” 

“Well curtains would be good. Waking up to the sun isn’t always ideal.” You said, a yawn slipping from your throat. “He could also use a throw blanket for the couch.” You added, pondering over what comforts Cale’s apartment seemed to be missing that would make it feel more like a home. 

Wandering through aisles, Laura did most of the shopping, occasionally asking for your thoughts on something before either tossing it into the cart or putting it back on the shelf. As you walked through the aisle containing photo frames you paused. 

“What do you think about surprising him with some pictures?” You suggested. He had a couple pieces of ‘artwork’ but there really weren’t any family photos to be found as far as you could see. 

“Why don’t you take the reins on that?” Laura replied, a soft look you couldn’t place filling her eyes as she handed you her phone. “Text yourself anything from my camera roll.” As she looked through possible throw pillows, you quickly scanned through the pictures, texting yourself a half dozen that would be perfect. Agreeing to meet up in about fifteen minutes, you headed back to the instant photo machine, plugging your phone in to print the pictures from Laura’s gallery as well as a couple from your own. Satisfied with what you had, you moved back to the frames, picking out one for each photo before moving to find some command strips to hang them with. 

On the car ride back to Cale’s place, you worked to get each photo into a frame. By the time Laura pulled back into the garage you were finished and you helped her carry all of the shopping bags inside. Cale had given his mom the spare key in case the two of you were done before he got back and after letting yourselves inside, you went to work on making Cale’s apartment feel just a little cozier. Together you hung curtains up in his living room, tossing pillows and the sherpa throw onto the couch. Then Laura helped you with hanging photos on his bedroom wall while a few of them were placed stationary on a side table in his living room. Laura unpacked the rest of the things Cale had asked her to buy and then the two of you settled onto the couch to watch tv until the guys arrived. 

Gary and Cale had picked up lunch on the way home, so the four of you sat down to eat. When you finished, Cale handed you a gift bag and though you had a feeling you knew what it was, you were still anxious to open it. Navy fabric accented with maroon and white spilled around your fingers and you gently ran your fingers over the number 8 and lettering of the nameplate. 

“Can’t have you come to the game tonight without proper apparel.” Cale murmured and you jumped up quickly, wrapping your arms around him in a hug. 

“It’s perfect.” You agreed. You’d packed the Makar home jersey that you’d bought yourself at the beginning of the season, but you had to admit the thirds were your favorite jersey and getting the jersey from Cale meant just a little bit more than buying one for yourself. 

As you cleaned up lunch, Cale started to settle in, getting ready to take his pregame nap. He had acknowledged the curtains, blanket, pillows and other things his mom had gotten him but it wasn’t until he disappeared into his bedroom for a moment that his eyes must have caught the photos. He’d only been gone maybe 30 seconds when he returned, pulling his mom into a huge hug, his eyes soft. 

“You framed pictures for me?” He muttered softly. 

“That idea was all Y/N.” Laura quickly clarified and immediately Cale turned to you, his arms wrapping around you just as tightly. 

“That’s incredible. Thank you.” He whispered into your ear, and when he pulled back his hands lingered on your hips for a moment more. 

Soon you were grabbing everything you’d need for the game because you were headed with Laura and Gary to play tourist while Cale napped and then headed to the rink. Laura and Gary had already headed downstairs while you debated on a shirt to wear and you didn’t even notice Cale come up beside you as you dug through your bag. 

“Wear that one.” He instructed, pointing to a wine red long-sleeved off-the-shoulder blouse. “We’re going out after the game if we win.” He clarified, rubbing the back of his neck. You were already wearing your favorite pair of jeans and had thrown on a cute pair of tennis shoes for running around. You weren’t exactly a club type of person but going out with Cale and his teammates did seem fun. 

“Okay.” You agreed, disappearing into his bathroom to change tops before returning. “Have a good nap. And kick some ass tonight.” You teased, grabbing your makeup bag because you’d barely put any on to go shopping and if you were going out tonight you were going to need to rethink your current makeup. With everything you needed, you snuck a kiss to Cale’s cheek before disappearing out the door to meet Gary and Laura down at the car. 

____

The last time you saw Cale play live was versus Calgary during the playoffs. So sitting in the stands of the Pepsi Center watching him warm up was an entirely different experience. You’d watched him on tv many times but in person it was clear to see just how much his game was growing every day. He was almost mesmerizing to watch and tucked in next to Laura, wrapped in his jersey, you felt at peace. Well, at least until the puck dropped for real. 

During a commercial break in the first period, the Avs announced a promo game. After the participant was introduced and the game was explained, a baby picture popped up on the screen. In it, a little boy, no more than 9 or 10 months old, sat between the legs of a little girl around the age of five who had a book in her hands. Immediately your own cheeks flushed as you recognized the picture, it was one of your favorites from when you and Cale were super little. The fan playing got one guess of who it was with no options to win an autographed jersey, but they were way off and guessed Nate for some reason. Then multiple choice popped up with Cale’s name, JT’s, and Gabe for a chance at an autographed puck. You didn’t even pay attention to the guess beyond hearing the boos signaling they got it wrong, but instead your gaze landed on Cale who was looking up at the screen, hiding a smile as he took some ribbing by his teammates. Eventually his eyes drifted up to where you were seated and he sent a little wink that you would have missed if you weren’t looking at him. From beside you Laura just smiled and bumped your shoulder, signaling without words just how strong your friendship with Cale really was. 

The Avs played a solid all around game and you cheered with each goal scored. Cale had two assists on the night and with the team coming out with the win you knew he was going to be in a good mood. Heading down to the locker room, you listened as Gary rambled on about the game as hockey dads do while sharing looks with Laura that made you burst into laughter. 

When Cale finally stepped out of the locker room he hugged his parents before lifting you up and spinning you around. 

“You ready to go have some fun?” He inquired, boyish smile on his face. 

“Don’t get into too much trouble.” Laura warned, though her expression wasn’t all that serious. 

“As if I’d let him.” You joked. For years Cale’s family had the running joke of you being the more responsible one keeping Cale in line. It wasn’t always true obviously, but for the most part the point stood. Still after the past few weeks Cale had had, you were willing to let him go just a little bit crazy tonight, knowing that you would be there as his safety net. 

“We’ll see you both tomorrow.” Gary grinned. “Go relax and have a good time.” Cale’s arm drifted around your waist as he tugged you to his car. Once there, you stripped off the jersey leaving you in just the blouse and as he pulled out of the garage you mussed up your hair just a little bit. Using the mirror, you carefully added a little more eyeliner before throwing on a dark lipstick, tossing both cylinders into the cupholder beside you. 

By the time you stepped out of the car at the club you felt ready for a night out and as you watched Cale shed his jacket, you felt his eyes on you once more. 

Waiting for him to be ready to head inside, you watched as a tall redhead approached, beautiful woman tucked into his side. 

“Y/N…this is JT and his girlfriend Lauren.” Cale introduced and you reached a hand out to shake theirs before tucking your hand back into your pocket. 

“So this is the best friend.” JT said, smirking. “Bout time Cale finally brought you around, he’s been talking about you for forever.” 

“Really?” You teased, ready to throw out a semi-embarrassing tidbit until Cale grabbed you by the waist, his finger falling to your lips to shush you as he guided you inside. 

“Can you at least let me get a drink or two in me before you start spilling the embarrassing stories?” He pleaded jokingly. 

“I suppose.” You conceded, smiling as he guided you up to the VIP lounge and over to the bar. Settling for a glass of wine, you watched him order a beer for himself before leading you over to one of the many couches. It wasn’t long before you were being introduced to all of Cale’s teammates. 

Gabe was boisterous and funny and the way that he looked at his wife Mel made you smile brightly. Josty was a character, he had you laughing almost immediately as he told stories about all of the media events he’d done with Cale and what he’d learned from residing in the same building. He was definitely giving you ammo to use later. Then again they all were, chirps had been flying left and right all night. 

You’d been nursing the same glass of wine for about an hour, watching as Cale downed another 2-3 beers as well as a shot that Burky handed him. It was nice to see Cale out with people that clearly cared about him and you knew this was probably the first time he had really been able to let go of all of the stress since the pregnancy scare. 

Eventually Mel and Lauren dragged you out onto the dance floor with the other better halves and even though you’d barely had anything to drink, the beat of the music had you relaxing, enjoying the time you had getting to know the people who were part of Cale’s other family. 

“You know his eyes haven’t left you all night.” Mel eventually declared, her voice barely audible over the loud music. 

“He’s always been a little protective…” You simply shrugged. The look Mel and Lauren shared suggested that they weren’t buying that logic but they didn’t push things. After a few more songs, you left the dance floor to head to the bar for a bottle of water. While there a tall….like really tall, dark haired man who looked like he should star in the next hollywood vampire blockbuster, slipped up beside you, his arm brushing against yours lightly. As you placed him as Cale’s d-partner you smiled up at him before looking back at where the bartender was rushing back and forth. 

“You know none of us have ever seen him like this before…” Ryan murmured. “He comes out but he never really lets loose. Now I don’t know whether that’s because it’s the first time we’ve been out since everything happened or if it’s because you’re here but I suspect it’s more to do with the latter.” You didn’t really know what to say to that so you shrugged. “And I’m not saying that in the manner of he feels like you’re the babysitter who will take care of him, I’m saying that he feels comfortable because you’re here in a way he was never comfortable either by himself or with Sara.” Ryan finally managed to get the bartender’s attention and he ordered your water along with whatever he was drinking before continuing. “And I’m sure Cale never said anything and neither did anyone else but…you should know everyone really likes you. And I can’t say the same for Sara.” Just as quickly as he’d appeared, Ryan had walked off and you glanced over at Cale to see his eyes planted firmly on you, his cheeks rosy from the alcohol. 

Water in hand, you moved to Cale’s side, his arm wrapping around you immediately. The redness in his eyes told you he’d had a little bit more to drink than he probably should have and you pushed your water his way, not wanting him to be completely impossible to drag home. The grin on his face was lazy as he took the bottle, showing how completely relaxed and at ease he was. 

His Adam’s apple bobbed as he took a long sip of the water and you tilted your head to observe him, tie gone and the top few buttons of his shirt undone. His fingers slipped just under the edge of your shirt along your hip and you took your own sip from the bottle of water trying to hide the flush that filled your body at the feeling of his fingertips on your bare skin. Passing the water back to him, it was soon gone and once the bottle was empty you stood, looking over your shoulder. 

“Are you going to sit there all night or are you going to come dance with me?” You inquired, your tongue running against your bottom lip. Stumbling just slightly, Cale slipped out of the booth and his hand fell to the curve of your back as he guided you over to where his teammates and their significant others were dancing. 

With Cale’s chest pressed against your back, his hands fell to your hips once more and the pads of his fingers wandered over every inch of skin they could reach. His touch had never affected you like this before, he’d never been this brazen before, but you chalked both of those factors up to the alcohol. Though you’d only had two glasses of wine since you arrived, wine had always made you far warmer than any other form of alcohol so the heat in your skin was definitely just from that. 

“So I have a question…” Cale’s breath fanned over your ear as he leaned down to whisper yell at you, allowing you to hear him over the rap song that was playing. 

“Yes Cale?” You replied, tilting your body back against his so that you could see his face. It was even rosier than before and his soft smile was replaced by a serious and focused look causing your eyebrow to quirk at the sight. 

“Women like having oral sex performed on them right?” For a split second you were certain that it was only Cale’s hold on you that kept you from falling right over. Choking on your own saliva as you tried to swallow you quickly coughed, your cheeks even more flushed than you could attribute to the wine. 

“I…I mean from what I’ve heard yeah…” You finally stumbled out an answer. “Why?” Your question was ignored as Cale’s hands tightened around your hips. 

“You’ve heard?” Cale prodded. “You don’t know?” Cursing under your breath you shivered as Cale’s thumb stroked a sensitive spot along your side. 

“Cale…” You mumbled, not drunk enough for this conversation. He poked you in the side though signaling you to continue and you groaned. “I mean…I had sex for the first time freshman year of college and we didn’t exactly know what we were doing…” You explained, softly enough that only Cale would hear you. “And I mean I’ve only had sex one other time…it was a one night stand and we were both way too drunk to do anything but fuck. So yeah…I’m just taking other people’s word on it…why are you asking Cale?” You finished, twisting in his arms so that you could look at him properly. His head ducked to press against the crook of your neck and he hissed quietly as you drug your nails along his lower back. 

“Just curious…” Cale breathed. “Sara never let me…I mean I wanted to but…she told me she wasn’t interested.” For a moment you didn’t know what to say as that little piece of you celebrated the fact that it seemed there were a lot of things he didn’t do with his ex girlfriend. 

“Oh…I mean everyone has their own likes and dislikes…” You reminded him. “But generally equal reciprocation is definitely appreciated.” 

As the song ended, Gabe called Cale’s name to go take another shot and you pushed him to go murmuring that you were going to run to the bathroom. By the time you returned, you suspected it was definitely time to get Cale home, so you sidled up to his side, slipping your hand in his front pocket for his car keys. 

“I think it’s time we get you home and to bed rockstar.” You declared. Thankfully Cale didn’t put up much of a fight, closing his tab before letting you lead him out of the club. By the time you had parked in his garage, you could see how sleepy the alcohol was making him and you moved around to help him out of the car, his body nearly dragging yours down with its weight. 

Stumbling through the door, you urged him to start to bed while you got him more water and some pain killers. Gathering both, you moved to his room after checking to ensure the front door was locked. You found him sitting on the edge of his bed, dressed in only boxer briefs and though you tried not to stare, your body couldn’t help but notice that gone was the teenage boy you once knew and in his place was a man plain and simple. Setting the water and pills on his bedside table, you urged him to take his contacts out. 

Once you were certain he was fairly settled, you turned to make your way to the couch. Instead, Cale’s hands reached out to pull you back to him and as he scooted to the far side of the bed, he drug you down with him. 

“Cale…” You mumbled in complaint but his eyes were already closed and his breathing was starting to steady out, his hands keeping your body pressed tightly against his. Sighing, you managed to work yourself out of your jeans before giving in and settling in his arms. 

Between your conversation with Gravy, the looks Mel and Lauren were giving you, Cale’s inquiry, wandering hands, and this, so many lines had been blurred tonight that it was making you dizzy. 

For the second night in a row…your mind reeled as you fell into a fitful sleep. 

**Blouse:**


	5. Chapter 5

Waking up wrapped in Cale’s arms was a shock to your system but one that made you feel warm and safe. The competing mindsets made you gasp, and for a moment you feared you’d woken Cale. Instead, he just tightened his grip on your body, forcing you to snuggle even further into his mostly naked figure. 

As you laid in his arms, your body became attuned to the feeling of his breath on your neck, the way the muscles in his arms twitched, and the solid length of him pressed against you in more ways than one. Heat flooded your core at the feeling of his dick pressed against your ass and you cursed yourself, carefully trying to extricate yourself from his arms. 

Tiptoeing out of his room, you grabbed a pair of leggings from your bag along with a sweater and clean undergarments. Though you debated just changing, you did need to shower so you snuck back through Cale’s room into the bathroom, praying that the sound of the water didn’t disturb him. 

With the heated spray working to alleviate the aches from dancing last night, you rubbed your temples trying to figure out what the hell had happened last night. Okay so you knew what had happened, you weren’t drunk, but you couldn’t figure out why it had happened. Were things actually different between you and Cale or were you just imagining it? He’d just been screwed over hard by his girlfriend of almost three years and you were someone he knew he could trust. That had to explain the increased affection right? 

A knock on the door interrupted your thoughts. Cale popped his head in to ask if you were almost done and you called back that you just needed another minute or two. Rushing through the rest of your shower, you quickly dried off and got dressed before slipping out of the bathroom. 

“It’s all yours!” You called to Cale as you retreated to the couch. You prayed that you had some plans for the day because otherwise you might actually drive yourself crazy. 

Thankfully Laura and Gary came through, and for the next two days you ran around Denver, all of the sights and sounds providing the exact distraction that you needed. By the end of the day you were exhausted and you quickly passed out on the couch with only minimal conversation with Cale. 

On your final day in Denver, Cale played an afternoon game, an upsetting loss in overtime. Gary and Laura wanted to go to a brewery after the game, but that really wasn’t your thing so Cale suggested you just have a relaxing night watching tv in his apartment instead. He’d ordered takeout, and the two of you had sprawled across his couch with reruns of some sitcom playing in the background. 

After dinner he’d suggested opening a bottle of wine and snuggled beside him under his new blanket, one glass became two and two became three. Soon the two of you were working on finishing off your second bottle and you’d reached the point where every nerve ending in your body was humming. 

“You know…we haven’t spent this much time together since…well honestly I can’t remember when…” Cale murmured against your head. “It’s been really nice.” He added. 

“Yeah you’re not so bad to hang out with.” You teased, pressing the side of your face into his shoulder. It still amazed you sometimes that while you were four and a half years older, he was just so much bigger than you in every way. It made you feel safe and with the wine swirling around your brain it made you wonder what it would be like to have him on top of you, pressing you into the mattress. 

You didn’t have to wait long to sort of find out, with your mind off on a tangent you missed Cale trying to get your attention until his fingers were digging into your sides, tickling you as a shrill squeal left your throat. Somehow he’d ended up hovering over you on the couch as you squirmed away from him and the way his blue eyes stared down at you made you freeze. What felt like cracks of electricity passed between you, until finally Cale let out a long sigh and climbed off of you, tucking you back into his side. 

Though nothing had happened, it felt like everything between the two of you had shifted. 

“Am I crazy?” Cale mumbled eventually. 

“I mean you do play a sport where you’re getting hit by 200 pound guys into boards every few nights…” You cheekily replied, trying to cover the way your heart was pounding by making light of his words. 

“Y/N…” Cale grumbled, his fingers coming up to run through his hair. “That’s not what I mean and you know it.” He sighed. “Tell me I’m not crazy. Tell me that you feel this too.” Swallowing hard, you ran your fingers through your hair as well. 

“You’re not crazy.” You spoke, your tone hushed. As he shifted to look at you, you dropped your gaze to your lap. Quickly, his fingers moved to lift your chin, forcing you to look at him. His expression was hopeful but his eyes gave way to the fear and confusion you were also feeling. 

“There’s a spark.” He sounded so sure of himself with that statement that you couldn’t tear your eyes away from him. “I’ve never felt that with anyone else.” His fingers trailed from your jaw to tangle in your hair, his thumb brushing over your cheek. “How have I never noticed this before…you before?” You didn’t have an answer to that, instead, you just shivered at the way he was touching you, like you were the most precious thing on the planet. 

“Come ‘ere.” His request was merely a formality because he was already pulling you into his lap as he spoke it. With your hips now straddling his, you watched as his fingers traced patterns down your arms before he laced his fingers with yours. “Is this okay?” He asked after a moment, genuine concern for your comfort dripping from his words. 

“Yes.” You agreed as your pulse slammed through your veins even harder than before. 

“Shit.” Cale groaned after a moment, the sound of it sending heat to your core. “I always thought this was just some silly cliche teenage crush.” Your eyes went wide at his words and your body tensed slightly, though Cale picked up on both immediately. “You know, falling for your best friend who is too old and too beautiful to ever want anything to do with a kid. Not that you’re too old now…but a few years ago…” You nodded because you knew what he was trying to say. When he was 15, you were by all societal standards too old for him to even consider there being something there; but now…21 (almost 22) and 26 was a different ball game. 

“For years I wished it was just a teenage crush…” You breathed. 

“You….?” Cale didn’t need to verbalize the question for you to understand what he was asking and letting down your guard fully you nodded. 

“I got really good at pretending.” You admitted. For a moment Cale’s eyes grazed over your lips as his hands moved to tug your hips against his. Then his eyes met yours, and seeing no sign of rejection, he tangled a hand in your hair before pulling your mouth onto his. 

As you kissed him back, you slid your own hand around his neck, securing his body to your own. He tasted like the wine you’d been drinking all night and suddenly you just felt warm from head to toe. The kiss started gently but deepened until you were both left breathing heavily upon parting. 

“Shit…can we do that again?” He mumbled, the look in his eyes sending another chill through your body in excitement. Kissing him again, you took the time to explore all of the feelings that just kissing him created. His hands ran up and down your back while yours locked onto his shoulders. Every so often, your hips would rock against his and he’d moan, ratcheting the kiss up another level. It wasn’t long before you felt him grow hard between your bodies and though you didn’t want to, you forced yourself to pull away. 

“Killing me…” Cale grumbled, his head thrown against the back of the couch as he stared at you with blown pupils and swollen lips. 

“You’ve been killing me all week with those wandering hands of yours.” You replied. “Not to mention dragging me to bed with you almost nude the other night.” Cale’s eyes went wide and you realized that he didn’t remember that at all. “What’s the last thing you remember at the bar the other night?” You asked, giggling softly. 

“I remember watching Gravy walk over to you at the bar…” He mentioned, the flush on his cheeks growing rosier again. 

“So you don’t remember dancing with me? The question you asked me?” Cale shook his head and you felt your own cheeks heat up. 

“What did I say?” He sighed, fingers running back through his hair. 

“You uh…you asked me if women like receiving oral because Sara never let you try…” You felt Cale’s groan through your entire body, the sound of it only serving to turn you on. “And then once I got you home, I sent you to get ready for bed while I got you water and pain meds and next thing I know you’re pulling me into bed with you and you wouldn’t let me go.” Cale’s head hit your shoulder as he mumbled out an apology. 

“It was a little awkward but it’s okay.” You assured him, nails scraping over the back of his neck. “It was more awkward waking up to your morning wood.” You teased, giggling until suddenly you were flat on your back once more, Cale’s length still pressing against you. 

“You mean this?” He growled softly, his hips rocking against yours. You gasped at the feeling and at how forward Cale was being. You didn’t know this side of him but you were quickly growing to like it. “This is all because of you. All you have to do is bite your lip or scrape your nails against the back of my neck and just like that I’m hard as a rock.” Cale’s lips dropped to press light kisses against your neck. “Fuck.” He breathed, clearly trying to settle his own body. “It’s never been this easy.” Pocketing that statement in the back of your mind for a later conversation, you eased his mouth back to yours, kissing him gently. 

“Our timing kinda sucks you know…” You sighed, your thumbs brushing over his red cheeks. 

“I know…” He agreed, climbing off of you. 

“Can we just…I just…kiss me and we can worry about everything else later?” You pleaded. Cale’s mouth slanted over yours in compliance and you stayed that way, sharing lazy kisses, until long after the sun had set. As you dozed against him, Cale carried you to his bed, wrapping you in his arms. There wasn’t enough time to explore everything he wanted to with you, but he was going to make the most of what time you did have, whispered promises of summer spilling from his lips. 


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Pictures of the house: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/626276020763410433

As much as you’d been filled with a small sense of dread to arrive in Denver, that same feeling settled deep in your stomach as you climbed on the plane to leave. You’d woken to the feeling of Cale’s lips on your neck and his hand on your stomach under the fabric of your shirt. Though it wasn’t something you were used to…you knew that you could quickly get used to it, no question. 

Cale had refused to say goodbye, only ‘I’ll see you soon’ as he wrapped his arms around you tightly. Though leaving was hard, navigating through whatever this was while hundreds of miles apart was something you were determined to do and so Facetimes and phone calls became a much more frequent companion. With a countdown timer on your phone tracking the absolute last possible day Cale would be home for the summer you attempted not to dwell on the questions you had, choosing instead to just take things a day at a time. 

Taking things a day at a time had led you to this point. Boxes upon boxes were scattered around you here in the living room and everywhere else. For the first time all day, you were standing listening as silence filled the air around you as you took in your new home. After years of saving for this day and months of thinking about it, you were finally a homeowner and you couldn’t be more excited. To make things even better, Cale was due to fly in tomorrow after being eliminated from playoffs. You couldn’t wait to hug him, to show him this place, to feel his lips on yours once more. 

As you debated whether to dig into another box or order dinner, there was a sharp knock at your door. Figuring one of your neighbors had seen you moving in and had stopped by to introduce themselves you headed to the front door, throwing it open. 

Immediately a shriek left your throat and you threw your body forward toward your unexpected guest. A pair of strong hands caught your hips and a low male chuckle reached your ears. Tilting your head, you latched your lips onto his, pulling away after a moment to stare at him with wide eyes. 

“What are you doing here? Your flight isn’t supposed to arrive until tomorrow!” Your eyes raked over Cale’s body as he held you close, observing the toll playoffs had taken on him. He seemed thinner than you remembered and a cut below his eye was in the later stages of healing, but that was just what you could see on a cursory examination. You were sure there were other bruises and wounds that hadn’t been revealed to you yet. 

“Are you going to let me in?” Cale chirped. “Or do I only get to see the curb appeal of this new place of yours?” Stepping aside, you watched Cale carry in two big bags along with his carry-on, one of the larger bags clearly full of his equipment. He set them off to the side of the entry toward the living room as you closed the door behind him. The moment his hands were free, you stepped into him once more, your palms settling against his chest. 

“Are you going to answer me? What are you doing here?” Cale’s smirk grew as he ducked his head to kiss you again, but it quickly turned into a pout when you pulled away, awaiting an answer. 

“I flew in early okay. So that I could see you.” Your cheeks warmed slightly and you let him sneak a quick kiss before staring at him for a more detailed explanation. “I knew my mom would be all over me when I got home and I just wanted some time with you without being asked a million questions. So I took an earlier flight. I’ll either take an uber home tomorrow or maybe I can say you picked me up.” His eyes were almost pleading as he suggested you give him a ride home tomorrow and you sighed rolling your eyes at him. 

“We’ll see if you earn that privilege or if I’m gonna make you suffer another uber ride.” You joked. “And just an FYI you only missed your parents by like fifteen minutes so your plan almost backfired on you big time.” 

“But it didn’t now, did it?” Cale whispered sharply, his eyes dark. “Now…are we past the pleasantries? Can I kiss you like I’ve been dying to since you left?” Left breathless by the way he was looking at you, you simply nodded pressing up onto your toes to meet him halfway. His hands tangled in your hair and he deepened the kiss, swiping his tongue into your mouth in a fight for dominance. 

It had been so hard to stop things from progressing that night on his couch, and the need you felt now was exponentially greater. As one of his hands dropped to slip under the back of the ratty tank you were wearing you realized that you didn’t want him to stop. 

“Cale…” You moaned, desire pooling in your core. Your nails scraped over the back of his neck and he grunted in response, twisting to push you back against your new front door. The press of his body against yours had you tossing your head back against the wood and you gasped his name again as his lips grazed over your neck. 

“Yeah, sunshine…you know how much I missed you?” He mumbled, his words muffled by your skin. “Did my girl miss me too?” Cale had called you every form of friend from best friend to childhood friend to closest friend before but hearing him call you his girl was new and that simple possessive phrase made you need him all the more. 

His hands slipped under your thighs to leverage your legs up and around his waist before they landed on your ass, holding your body steady against his own. 

“I’m hoping you at least have a mattress lying around somewhere?” He questioned, pausing every few words to kiss you again. “Or am I fucking you right here?” Your body shuddered in response, a needy moan spilling forth once more. 

“End of the hall.” You directed. “Though I can’t say I’m opposed to the latter option.” You added, rolling your hips against his abdomen. 

“Noted.” Cale groaned, shifting away from the door to head down the hall. You tucked your head into Cale’s neck, peppering kisses along his skin so that he could see over you and not trip on the scattered boxes. When he reached the bed, he dropped you onto it gently, quickly tugging his t-shirt over his head before joining you. 

“Can I?” He questioned, his hands beginning to tug at the material of your tank. 

“I’m all yours.” You assured him, lifting your arms to make his job easier. You giggled at him as he struggled to unclasp your bra but just moved to assist him, your lips seeking his out as you were pressed chest to chest for the first time. “Cale please…” You whimpered, needing more of everything: his touch, his kiss, the weight of him between your thighs. 

For a moment there was a flicker of hesitation in his blue eyes, but then it was gone and his fingers were fumbling with the button and zipper of your denim shorts. Sliding your own hands down his chest, you reached to release him as well, your hand grazing against his hardened length. 

“Y/N,” Cale warned, his voice gruff and you smiled, repeating the action with purpose, feeling him twitch against your palm. He shifted backward as he tugged your shorts and underwear off of your body and then he paused, his eyes taking in the sight of you bare for him for the first time. His cheeks grew rosy, but he quickly returned his body to its spot over yours, kissing you deeply. 

“You’re so sexy.” He breathed, his free hand starting to wander up and down your curves. 

“And you’re overdressed.” You chastised, still working to remove his remaining clothing to even the playing field. When he finally gave in and pushed the fabric off his hips, you gasped at the sight of him, hard and heavy against his stomach. You’d never felt as needy for someone as you felt for him right now and you were certain it showed in your body’s reactions. 

Kissing him once more, you felt his hands ghost over your skin, teasing softly. Nipping his lip lightly, you scraped your nails over his lower back. 

“Cale. I swear to god we have all the time in the world to experiment with whatever foreplay you want later…but if you don’t fuck me now I’m going to lose my mind.” You moaned, pressing your hips up against him in search of friction. 

Cale pulled away and for a moment you wanted to curse him until you realized he was grabbing a condom from his wallet. Taking it from him, you carefully tore the foil package open before rolling the condom over him. Cale then hovered over you again, his eyes almost cobalt blue and you watched his chest heave in anticipation. 

“Are you sure?” He asked. While you appreciated his need for consent, you’d thought your previous statement signaled exactly what you wanted. A short chuckle fell from his mouth at the exasperated look on your face and he shook his head, reaching down to line himself up with where you needed him. “Forget I asked.” He mumbled, kissing you hard as he pressed forward, burying himself inside you. 

Gasping, your body stretched around him and when you rolled your hips against his, he took that as his signal to move. Though you had expected that there might be some stumbles as you explored a physical relationship, Cale was incredibly good at reading your body language. He was quick to find an angle that hit all the right spots and it didn’t take much longer for him to settle into a rhythm that had you clinging to him as pleasure crept up on you. 

It was fast, it was needy, it was not the gentle sex a part of you had expected your first time with him would be. But it was good, god was it good. As much as you tried not to leave marks, you were certain your nails were leaving scratches all over Cale’s back and shoulders. At the same time, you knew you’d have marks from Cale’s mouth on your chest, his hands on your hips. 

As the knot in your stomach tightened, signaling your orgasm was near, Cale’s hand slipped between your bodies, his fingers rubbing over your swollen clit. 

“Oh Fuck.” You moaned, your toes curling as you worked to meet him thrust for thrust. It was right there, so close. 

“That’s my girl…come on…” Cale’s voice was strained as he gasped against your lips, his hips starting to stutter as his own orgasm approached. Hearing him call you his for the second time today caused your brain to short out and suddenly you felt your release crash over you leaving you warm and relaxed, your muscles syrupy as you finished spasming around him. Cale’s grunts reached your ears as he too achieved release and you winced as he carefully slipped out of you. 

As your breathing started to settle, Cale mumbled something about trash and you replied that there was a bag hanging over a broom in the kitchen. The bed shifted as he retreated, and then again as he settled back in beside you, his fingers turning your head so he could kiss you. 

“You okay?” He whispered, thumb brushing against your cheek. 

“Of course…” You assured him. “That was…” There were so many words you could use to describe it but none seemed to convey exactly what you wanted it to. 

“What sex should feel like.” Cale finished your thought for you and you nodded, though his statement made you think about how he hadn’t had much sex with his ex. Trailing your fingers down his chest, you propped yourself up a little to look at him. 

“It wasn’t like that with her?” The question escaped without running through your normal filters and though Cale tensed for a moment he eventually looked back at you, expression soft. 

“No.” He sighed. “It wasn’t. I..I don’t know how to explain it but there’s no comparison. I…I didn’t know what _really good sex_ is supposed to feel like until just now.” As you thought about your previous sexual encounters you couldn’t help but agree. There was no comparison between what you’d experienced with them and what you’d just experienced with Cale. 

“Hmm…guess it’s a good thing we have plenty of time for more ‘really good sex’.” You grinned. “All night in fact.” Cale’s cheeks which had started to settle flushed right back up and you couldn’t help but laugh at his expense. 

“Except that was my only condom.” He mumbled, rubbing his face. 

“Guess it’s a good thing I have a brand new box somewhere in one of these bathroom boxes.” You insisted. Before you could tease Cale anymore, your stomach let out a long growl and it was your cheeks turn to heat up. Eyes filled with mirth, Cale kissed you gently before moving to climb out of bed. 

“How about we order some dinner, you can give me a tour of this house, and then we can talk about revisiting that idea.” He suggested, picking up your clothes and tossing them across the bed to you. When you didn’t immediately reach for the clothes, his gaze fell to you again, concern crossing his features. 

“Can you uh…maybe dig through one of those boxes and see if you can find me a rag to clean up?” You requested, your thighs and core still slick with arousal. Cale’s eyes went wide and he immediately turned to the stack of boxes in the corner. 

“Shit uh…just give me a minute.” He insisted, and you watched as he dug through them seemingly coming up empty. Instead of ransacking them further, he just tossed you his shirt from the floor beside him. 

“Cale I know I have rags…” You insisted, not wanting to dirty his shirt. 

“And I have other shirts.” He replied, a smirk on his face. “And I actually know exactly where they are.” He added. “I’m sure you’ve got a washing machine here somewhere…it’s fine, use it.” 

Accepting his shirt, you used it to wipe yourself down before throwing back on your dirty clothes. Clearly, the first thing you needed to do was unpack the bathroom boxes. Once you were redressed you leaned up to kiss him gently, your hands trailing lightly over his naked back. 

“Thank you.” You hummed, pulling away with a swing of your hips that made Cale groan. Tossing his shirt on the stairs to the basement, you moved through the living room to where Cale was tugging a shirt over his head in the hallway. Hugging him again, just because you could, you tucked your body against his as he wrapped his arms around you in return. After a few minutes of just enjoying being in each other’s space, you agreed on dinner and Cale placed an order for delivery. 

While you waited for food, you unpacked another couple boxes, finding the towels and rags in a box in the main bathroom instead of one off the master. It made sense since, for some reason, the master bath was only a sink and toilet and the shower was in the main bathroom, you just hadn’t thought about it when you’d asked for a rag. Hanging a couple of bath towels up in the main bathroom, you divided the hand towels and rags between the two before tucking any of the excess linens into the linen closet. Finding the box of condoms amongst your razors and feminine hygiene products, you tossed the box to Cale suggesting he move it to one of the nightstand drawers. He stayed, hovered over your shoulder for a moment and you watched him open the box through the reflection in the mirror. Reaching around you, he tucked two or three condoms into the vanity drawer before disappearing back into the master bedroom. 

You were collapsing the now empty box when he’d returned and his arms snuck around your waist, his chin resting on your shoulder. 

“Having them in the bedroom wasn’t good enough?” You teased, the sound shifting to a squeal as Cale spun you around. 

“You know…in case we decide to test out this shower at some point.” He admitted, stealing a kiss before pulling away at the sound of a knock on the front door. Your stomach swooped at his words and by the time you pulled yourself together he was walking by with your dinner. 

Since the inside of the house was still a complete mess, it was clear that Cale had decided to eat outside because you found him lounging on your back patio, his back resting against the house. 

“You are…you’re something else, Cale…” You murmured as you moved to sit next to him. “I’m learning a whole different side of you and it’s…kinda sexy. It’s throwing me but I like it.” Bumping your shoulder against his side, you took the container of food he handed you, digging in. You hadn’t eaten all day so this was exactly what you needed after the labor of moving and unpacking and then the unexpected physical activities. 

Dinner was enjoyed with only the sounds of birds chirping as background. When Cale finished, he set his trash aside and dropped his hand to your knee looking around. 

“Why do I get the feeling this yard was a main factor in you picking this house?” He waited until you had finished eating as well to ask the question. Tucked into his side you laced your fingers with his before responding. 

“Because it was and you seem to know me fairly well.” You murmured. 

“Tell me more. Show me this place through your eyes.” Cale whispered, his eyes soft and filled with so much affection that it nearly left you breathless again. 

“Well…I mean you know what Calgary is like…” You started. “Finding a property that has a decent-sized yard is no easy task.” Cale nodded in agreement and you took a deep breath before continuing. “And I don’t know…I walked out here for the first time and immediately thought of throwing Canada Day parties for family and friends.”

When you paused again, Cale knew there was more to it than that and he nudged your side. 

“C’mon sunshine…you know you can tell me anything.” Cale urged, tilting your head up to his for a moment. “You’re not going to scare me away if that’s what you’re thinking…” Your eyes must have given you away because Cale turned to face you better, his expression turning serious. “Y/N…I’m in this okay. I want you. I want to be with you. There is practically nothing you could say that would make me walk away. Okay?” You couldn’t help but nod in response to him, even if your stomach was twisting at the vulnerability required to tell him everything he wanted to know. 

“I don’t know. I guess deep down every house I looked at, I was looking for a yard big enough to make a small rink in.” You admitted, motioning to the long corner of the yard. “I can picture that going over there.” You explained. “And then there’s still room for training equipment or I don’t know…” You murmured. The moment you stepped into this house it was hard not to see Cale everywhere, to imagine how a life with him would fit here even as just a summer residence. 

Taking your hand, Cale led you back inside, tossing your containers into the trash before guiding you to the living room. 

“Keep going.” He murmured, his arms wrapping around you. 

“I fell in love with this room in general.” You breathed. “The big bay window, the gas fireplace, the built-in bookshelf.” There were so many charms that you couldn’t not love it, even if the shape made placing furniture a little awkward. “And I mean there are little changes I’d like to make, fix the different floorings so they all match, maybe change the facade of the fireplace because the height feels a little too much…but for now it works and I still love it.” 

Guiding him through the living room toward the kitchen you paused for just a moment. “And I mean the kitchen is just gorgeous. Lots of counter space.” Turning toward the backdoor, you guided Cale downstairs, grabbing his dirty shirt to carry down to the laundry. At the bottom of the stairs, you paused again, giving Cale a moment to take in just how massive the finished basement was. 

“Sunshine,” Cale spoke softly, pulling your attention back from the wandering it had been doing. 

“I set foot down here and I…immediately I pictured a couple of kids running around, playing tag or whatever. And there’s just so much space…there are so many things that could be done down here.” You finished, weakly backtracking at the feeling of Cale’s gaze heavy upon you. 

After tossing his shirt into the laundry, you moved back upstairs and through the kitchen. “You already saw the master. Again big windows, big closet.” You paused again at the main bathroom. “I mean the shower is…speaks for itself really.” You shrugged. Pointing up at the front bedroom you murmured about it being a nice guest room and then finally you stopped in front of the last bedroom. 

“They had this one staged as an office…” You stated. “But uh…” Your throat got tight as you tried to speak and after a moment Cale’s hands were rubbing soothing patterns along the base of your spine. “I can’t help but picture it as a nursery…” You sighed, voice barely audible. You knew this was the one problem the age difference was likely to present. Cale was so young that kids likely weren’t even close to the front of his mind but although it was ticking slowly, you could hear your biological clock in the back of your mind. Except now it wasn’t just kids in general racing into your thoughts, it was Cale’s kids, making it so much harder to ignore. 

With Cale not responding, you ducked your head and moved to slip out of his arms, tears seeking to well up in your eyes. 

“So uh yeah…that’s everything.” You mumbled. Cale had said you couldn’t chase him away, but you feared you’d said just a little bit too much and had done just that, your heart breaking at the thought. 


	7. Chapter 7

You hadn’t even made it two steps before Cale’s hand caught your wrist, gently pulling you back to him. For a moment his expression seemed panicked, but then it softened considerably, a smile breaking onto his face as flickers of awe appeared in his eyes. You watched as he opened his mouth to speak twice, quickly shutting it each time before he finally hummed in content. 

“Is it my baby?” He questioned. “The one you imagine sleeping in there? Are they my kids running around the basement, skating in the backyard?” Though you hesitated, unsure of what answer he wanted to hear, your face must have given you away because Cale’s smile grew, his cheeks flushing. “You bought this house because you can see our life together here? You couldn’t wait to show me, could you? Hoping that I’d love it as much as you do?” Ducking his head, Cale pressed his lips to yours, easing them together gently. 

“You’re incredible.” He spoke, his breath fanning against your lips. “Would you relax?” He requested. “I’m not going anywhere.” His voice was so self-assured that you couldn’t help but take comfort in it. Kissing you again, Cale moved you over to your living room couch where he sat, pulling you halfway onto his lap.

“Should we talk about this?” He suggested. “We didn’t want to define this before but I think maybe we should now.” He continued. You’d failed to define things on purpose, not wanting to pressure Cale into anything considering the toxic relationship he’d gotten out of just before your feelings had been revealed. But it had been a few months and if Cale was ready for that step then you needed to hear him out. 

“What do you want?” You whispered, rubbing over your arm as a chill coursed through your body. 

“I want you.” Cale declared. “I want to get to know who you are as more than just my friend. I want to continue to explore this chemistry we have.” Gently his fingers brushed over your thigh, making you shiver for another reason entirely. “I care about you Y/N…and I think I could feel even stronger if given the chance.” 

“So…this is…?” You prompted not wanting to assume anything. Shaking his head, Cale smiled before inching his fingers higher on your thigh. 

“Us dating, an exclusive and serious relationship, you being my girlfriend…take your pick.” Cale grinned. 

“All of the above.” You breathed, almost amazed at how relaxed and sure he seemed about this. It shouldn’t have surprised you but for some reason it did. 

“I like the sound of that.” Cale mused. “But uh…can we keep this between us just for a little while. You know mom will go crazy and…”

“You want to be sure there’s something for her to go crazy over.” You finished. 

“That wasn’t what I was going to say,” Cale said, shaking his head. “That’s already true and I don’t see it changing.” Your heart jumped at his words because indirectly he was saying that this was something he was in for the long haul. Again, you probably could have gathered that from his awed reaction to the two of you having kids together someday, but for some reason, this phrasing was what really hit you hard. “I was going to say that I just want to enjoy this just the two of us for a while before I get looks every time I tell her I’m coming over here.” 

So he wanted to be selfish for a little while, you were totally okay with that. To be honest, you weren’t really looking forward to sharing this with the world just yet either. Still, you had to tease him just a little. 

“You just want the thrill of sneaking around like we’re teenagers again…” You razzed him. Though his cheeks flushed, he didn’t deny it, just shrugging his shoulders in response. 

“Problem?” He asked, his fingers settling at the base of your skull to pull you closer. 

“Nope.” You admitted, closing the distance between the two of you to kiss him again. The feeling of his mouth on yours was becoming addictive, but you didn’t want it any other way. 

By the time you finally pulled away to breathe, you felt calm. Now that the air was clear it seemed like some of the urgency that had lingered in you since his arrival disappeared. It wasn’t that you didn’t still feel needy for his touch, because you did, rather, now you felt secure in the fact that he was yours and so just being held by him was enough. 

“So uh your dad set my tv up for me. I don’t have internet yet but we could watch a movie or tv show on DVD if you want?” You whispered. When Cale nodded, you shifted to let him off the couch before pointing at the box you were certain contained all of your movies. You couldn’t help but admire Cale from behind as he dug through the box, finally making a selection. As you turned the tv on, you watched him pop it in the DVD player before turning to return to you. Suddenly he changed direction, moving over to his bags, and you perched yourself up on the couch, curious as to what had caused the path change. His hand was behind his back when he appeared in front of you again and he wore a sheepish smile. 

“I uh…I brought you something…I forgot about it until just now.” He explained, moving his hand to pass you the object. It was a photo frame and when you turned it over you gasped. Inside was a picture of the two of you from the night at the bar with the Avs. Cale was talking to someone, eyes bright and that lazy drunk grin on his face. You, on the other hand, were just resting against his shoulder like there was no place you’d rather be than tucked into his side. It was a cute picture and you immediately moved to place it on the fireplace mantle. “Lauren sent it to me and I thought it might make you smile.” Cale murmured. 

“It’s perfect.” You assured him, slipping your arms around his waist as you leaned in for a soft kiss. “Now what movie did you pick?” You inquired, the two of you settling back down to cuddle on the couch. A glance at the screen revealed the title screen for The Princess Bride and you giggled totally satisfied with his choice. 

Cuddling on the couch with your head on Cale’s chest was your new favorite way to spend an evening. You quoted parts of the movie to each other, Cale making you giggle each time. At one point he murmured against your head and when you couldn’t make out the words you pulled back just enough to look at him. 

“What was that?” You inquired. Cale looked at you like he didn’t expect to be caught and he shook his head as if to say it was nothing. For a moment you were prepared to let it go, but after how much Cale had prodded you to be open with him all evening, you felt you deserved the same. “Talk to me, Cale.” You nudged gently. His cheeks started turning pink again and you brushed your thumb over one of them, trying to reassure him. 

“I said I hope our kids get your giggle.” He eventually caved and admitted. 

“Oh.” You breathed, that not being what you expected at all. Cale opened his mouth again and you shook your head. “You don’t have to explain yourself Cale, you’re allowed to think those things. But if you want to talk about it, I’m all ears. I mean…I know you’re probably not ready to be seriously thinking about having kids and that’s okay, I’m not going to rush you, I know we’re at different stages…” Not realizing you’d started to ramble, you were shocked to be cut off by Cale’s mouth against yours. 

After kissing you, Cale leaned back against the couch and his eyes focused on the movie once more. You figured he wanted to drop the subject, so you complied, laying your head back down against him. 

“I’ve uh…I’ve had a lot of time to process what happened with Sara…” Cale eventually whispered. “And god I was terrified when she told me she was pregnant. But I don’t think that fear was at the thought of having a baby…it was the fear of having a baby with her.” You didn’t know what to do with that statement and you hoped Cale had more that he wanted to say. “Like I suspected she was cheating. I knew our relationship wasn’t good anymore. Having a baby in that situation would have just been a mess…” 

Cale paused to laugh at the scene on the screen in front of you but after a moment you felt him press a kiss to the top of your head. “But uh…I don’t think I’d be so scared if the situation was right…” That seemed to be all that Cale had to say and you nodded against him, his words lingering in your head. You had no idea what he meant by the ‘situation being right’ but it certainly felt like he was implying that he was open to kids with you at some point in the semi-distant future. 

Deciding that worrying about kids right now was just an exercise in insanity, you shifted your focus back to the movie and the man whose body you were snuggled into. This was new and good and you were going to enjoy it. You had Cale for the summer and you planned to make the most of that time with him. There were so many things left to discover about each other and so many experiences to share. It had been a long time since you were in a relationship and though this wasn’t anything like your previous relationships, you were going to take your time getting to know Cale in all of these new ways. 

When the credits finally started rolling across the screen you glanced up again to find Cale’s eyes on you. You weren’t sure how long he’d been staring, but you poked his side as a contented smile settled onto your face. 

“What are you thinking?” You teased, your eyebrows raised. 

“That you’re beautiful.” He said softly. “And that I can’t wait to spend the summer with you.” His thumb brushed against your cheek as he brushed a stray strand of hair from your face. “But also that I just want to take you to bed.” He finished, desire flickering in his eyes. 

“Lead the way.” You murmured, turning the tv off as Cale stood up. 

When the two of you reached the bedroom, Cale sat on the edge of the bed pulling you between his muscular thighs. With his hands on your hips, you watched as he pressed his head into your stomach for a minute before pulling back. 

“Can we take our time tonight?” He requested, his touch featherlight as his thumbs grazed your sides. 

“Of course, handsome.” You agreed, your fingers shifting to tangle in his hair. He didn’t react right away but after a moment his fingers slipped under your tank, slowly inching the fabric up your body. His mouth followed his hands, pressing kisses to your stomach, your ribs, and up along your sternum. Your breath hitched as first your tank and then your bra hit the floor for the second time today. 

“God I can’t get over how perfect you are.” Cale praised, a soft but wicked gleam present as he gazed at you. “And don’t tell me you’re not because you are.” Taking compliments had always been something you struggled with and Cale clearly knew it. The words of denial on your lips were quickly forgotten, however, when Cale lifted you, gently laying you back against the mattress. 

The way he was exploring your body was reverent and as much as you needed more, you were basking under his attention. There wasn’t a divet or curve Cale left unexplored. He hadn’t even touched you anywhere good yet but already you were aching for him. When his mouth latched onto one of your breasts, his teeth lightly scraping against your nipple, you were certain he could make you cum doing only that. Your body arched into him, your hands scraping against his lower back under his shirt until he pulled back to shed the offending fabric from his torso. 

“Look at you.” He mumbled, pressing himself against you, his lips seeking out yours again. “So beautiful. All mine.” 

“Yessss…” The whine left your throat as you attempted to thread your fingers under the waistband of his shorts. 

“Uh uh.” He immediately chastised, his hand quickly grasping both of yours, pinning them to the bed above your head. “Not yet.” He warned, his voice and the small act of domination making you shiver beneath him. His fingers showed off his dexterity as he undid the button on your shorts. “Keep them there.” He warned again, letting go of your wrists for just a moment while he worked your shorts and panties off of your body. Too absorbed in what he was going to do next, you left your hands where he’d placed them. As he hovered over you once more, his knee parting your thighs, you felt his mouth nip along your neck before he kissed you again. 

“Good girl.” He praised, “Guess I should reward you for being so good for me.” He mused, mischief crossing his expression before settling in his eyes. You felt his hand slip down your side before grazing along your thigh. Finally, his thumb bumped against your clit and you couldn’t help but moan when your skin sparked under his touch. “You’re so wet…” Cale breathed, his voice softening. 

“Cale…” You whimpered, your hips attempting to arch into his hand as much as you could while being held in place by his solid body. Leveraging you back down with his body, Cale slipped first one thick finger and then a second into your core. “Oh fuck.” You cursed as Cale curled his fingers just right, making your entire body hot. He continued to spread you apart, his actions slow and deliberate as the knot in your stomach started to tighten. 

If he was this good with his fingers and that good with his dick, you could only imagine what having his mouth on you would feel like when you finally reached that point. “Holy shit Cale right…” A choked gasp interrupted your sentence as Cale’s fingers scissored inside of you. As he curled them against your inner walls again, you felt your body snap and you cried out as your orgasm crashed over you. As your body finally drifted back down to reality you realized Cale was sitting back on his knees, licking his fingers clean of your juices. 

“You taste sweet.” Cale declared and for a moment all you could do was laugh. Cale eyed you, probably thinking you were crazy as you sat up to kiss him. Everything about this was surreal and in a way overwhelming. “Y/N?” Cale inquired, his forehead resting against yours. 

“I’m good.” You assured him, your hands settling at his hips. “You just keep surprising me that’s all.” 

“Mmm…is that right?” Cale breathed, his fingers trailing down your back. 

“It is.” You grinned. “Believe it or not, I tried not to think about your sex life so all of _this_ is new to me.” With his attention focused on your words, you were able to slide your fingers under the waistband of his shorts, your hands sliding down to cup the globes of his ass. “You’ve got a bit of a kinky side under the boy next door exterior.” You teased. 

“You aren’t as innocent as you appear either,” Cale smirked, his hips rolling back into your hands. 

“I never claimed to be.” You chirped, pushing at his shorts and boxer briefs wanting him free from the rest of his clothes. “Now are you going to fuck me?” You inquired, your neediness slipping back into your tone. 

“Nope.” Cale’s response threw you, especially when he helped you slide his clothing off before leaning over to where he’d stashed the box of condoms earlier. “Lay back sunshine. Let me take care of you.” He guided you to lay back against the pillows, settling his body over you. As he rolled the condom into place, Cale lifted your leg to drape over his hip and then gently and slowly pressed into you. It had only been a few hours since he’d last been inside you, but you’d missed the feeling of fullness that settled in your bones when you were connected like this. 

With arms pressed to either side of your head to hold him above you, Cale rolled his hips, creating just the slightest bit of friction. It was slow and felt beyond intimate and suddenly you understood everything. Cale wasn’t going to fuck you because this was so much more than that. This was the two of you connecting in the most intimate way; it was more than physical, it was emotional. 

Lifting your other leg to wrap around his waist, you tilted your head to kiss along his jaw. The new position allowed him to roll his hips deeper inside of you and you melded your mouth to his, pouring everything you felt for him into it. 

You weren’t sure how long the two of you had been like this, time seemed to be an illusion as your bodies worked slowly in tandem to bring each other pleasure. You could feel your orgasm slowly build, so steadily that you were certain you’d know when your orgasm was about to crest. Then Cale slid a hand under your back forcing your hips to arch and suddenly you were screaming his name as heat and pleasure and relief and love hit you one after the other in waves. Cale followed you into your orgasm, his moans serving as the greatest sound you’d ever heard. 

Kissing his shoulder, you waited for him to come down from his orgasm, your legs still wrapped firmly around his hips. He moved to pull out but you shook your head. 

“Just wait a minute please.” You requested. Cale complied, his nose brushing against your jaw as he buried his face into your neck. As much as you never wanted him to part from you, you knew he needed to and so after a moment you gingerly let your legs drop back to the mattress, whining at the feeling of your aching muscles. Your legs weren’t the only thing that ached as Cale pulled out of you, but somehow as he moved to dispose of the condom, you were able to move to use the bathroom, peeing and cleaning yourself up. 

Moving back into your room you decided that you were too tired to search for clean clothes and you certainly weren’t going to sleep in your dirty ones. So you slipped into bed as you were, yawning softly. You wondered what was taking Cale so long but you heard water running so you figured he was washing his hands and cleaning up himself. Instead, he returned with a bottle of water and a bottle of pills. Shaking a set of pills from the latter, he offered them and the water out to you. 

“So you’re not as sore in the morning.” He murmured. Grateful, you took them downing half of what was in the bottle as well because you definitely had not had enough to drink today. “Go ahead and finish it, I can refill it from the tap.” He insisted. Whispering your thanks you finished it off before laying back down. After refilling the bottle from the bathroom tap, Cale set it beside the bed and then crawled in beside you, his arms behind his head as if inviting you to snuggle against him. 

Taking the invitation, you snuggled close, your head resting on his shoulder. As soon as you were settled, he dropped his arms draping one around you. 

“I’m glad you flew in early.” You breathed. This was your first night in your new home and spending it with Cale just felt right. Like it was just the first of many in the years to come. “Today’s been…amazing.” 

“There’s nowhere else I’d rather be.” Cale replied, his lips pressing against your forehead. It was easy to start falling asleep, but you hummed in acknowledgement when Cale spoke your name. “We need to get you a bigger bed.” He mumbled. “Doubles are not made for 6 feet tall guys.” Giggling into his shoulder you smiled contentedly. “We’ll move this bed to the guest room and I’ll buy you a bigger bed. You can call it your housewarming present.” He insisted. That wasn’t a battle you were going to fight with him, you’d do pretty much anything to make sure that he was comfortable here, so you kissed his shoulder. 

“Alright Cale…now go to sleep.” You teased. Less than one day in, you already knew this was going to be the greatest summer ever. 


	8. Chapter 8

It had been a week since Cale had gotten home and although you’d seen him, you hadn’t had any alone time together. Cale had come over a few times, once with just Laura to help you do some more unpacking, a second time with his mom and dad who had bought you a patio set as your housewarming gift and then a third when his promised king-size bed had arrived and he’d brought his brother Taylor to help swap it out with your double.

Each time, you’d had to settle for a quick hug, unable to kiss him like you wanted to in front of his family. If you were slightly frustrated by having him so close and not being able to act the way you wanted, you didn’t let it show, but it did contribute to the utter exhaustion you were feeling.

Work was crazy, anyone wanting to move trying to do so while school was out for the summer. On top of that, you were trying to get the house completely unpacked, just wanting to be able to live without tripping over boxes or having to dig for something you needed. You’d been eating far more takeout than you would have liked, so when you came home to find Cale in your kitchen cooking, you almost immediately started to cry.

“Hey, you’re home…” Cale grinned, stirring something in the pot in front of him. When he noticed the tears, he adjusted the burners before stepping to wrap his arms around you. “Why are you crying?” He questioned and you just sniffled into his chest, so many emotions swelling inside of you.

You weren’t shocked that Cale was in your home, you’d sent the security code to the hide-a-key to Cale and his family in case of emergency. But the fact that he was here…cooking dinner…you certainly hadn’t expected that in your exhausted state. As your body finally settled at the feeling of Cale’s hand rubbing your back, you leaned up to kiss him gently.

“I just…this was unexpected and I’m exhausted and you caught me off guard.” You murmured. Cale nodded and kissed you again before glancing over at the pots on the stove.

“Well go change. Dinner is almost ready.” Cale insisted. Following his instructions you moved to throw on a cotton sundress, letting your hair down from where you’d clipped it to keep it off of your neck. By the time you returned to the kitchen, dressed down and barefoot, Cale had glasses of wine poured and was in the process of serving dinner. “Take those glasses outside and I’ll meet you there in a minute?” He suggested.

Taking a sip of one of the glasses of wine, you moved through your house, out the backdoor, and into one of the cushy chairs surrounding your outdoor table. It was a beautiful evening, and Cale’s surprise appearance was just what you needed after a long day. The fact that he’d cooked…well that impressed you even more and you couldn’t wait to taste what he’d made. A minute or so later, Cale was setting a plate down in front of you, loaded down with chicken alfredo.

“My favorite.” You declared, smiling over at him as he settled into the chair next to you, scooting it just a little bit closer.

“I know.” He replied. “Hopefully it tastes okay. I uh…I’ve never made it before. I had to google a recipe.” Honestly, it was a hard dish to screw up and Cale wasn’t totally incompetent in the kitchen so your hopes were relatively high.

“I’m sure it will be great. I didn’t have to cook it and it’s homemade not takeout.” You assured him, squeezing his hand before reaching for your fork. The food was more than okay and you devoured your entire plate fairly quickly. Cale finished fairly quickly as well and leaving your plates on the table for the moment, the two of you moved over to the loveseat, just enjoying each other’s company.

Cale’s fingers stroked gently at the skin just above your knee and his chin rested on top of your head as you laid yours on his shoulder.

“I’ve missed you.” He breathed, pressing kisses into your hair.

“Me too…” You agreed. “This whole sneaking around thing is hard when I want to kiss you all the time.” Cale chuckled, his chest vibrating against you.

“I know…” Cale conceded. “I just…” He started speaking until you cut him off.

“But we both know your mom would ask a million questions and it’s kinda nice not worrying about what anyone else thinks even though I know she’d be happy for us.”

“Exactly.” Cale mused. “Speaking of my mom though…” He transitioned. “She uh, she suggested I come talk to you about something…which saved me from having to make an excuse…” He admitted trailing off.

“What?” You questioned, confused.

“I uh…I’m thinking about taking a trip,” Cale explained. “Mom suggested I ask you to go with me.” Your eyes went wide immediately wondering if Laura had picked up on this even if you hadn’t told her anything. “She said it would be good for us to spend some time together after everything. I think she’s still worried about our friendship.” He continued, rubbing at the back of his neck after a moment.

“Oh.” You whispered, your brain just a step slow on the uptake.

“I uh…was going to ask you anyway for the record.” Cale clarified. “Her suggestion was just the prompt for me to come over tonight.”

“So a trip huh?” You breathed, curious as to what he had in mind. “Like to Banff or BC?”

“I was thinking Iceland.”

Your eyes went wide and you twisted to face him, your stunned reaction making his cheeks flush.

“Iceland?” You repeated. Cale could have given you a million guesses as to the location he had in mind and you still never would have guessed that.

“Yes, Iceland,” Cale said, completely nonchalant. “It’s supposed to be beautiful in the summer. And let’s face it, you and I aren’t really beach people. Looking at all the things there are to do there, it sounded like a trip we’d both enjoy.” Cale was right, neither of you was really a ‘lay around on a beach all day’ kind of person. The fact that he’d put thought into what you would like when selecting a location made your heart skip a beat.

“So what do you say?” He finally inquired. “Take some time off work and go on a trip with me?” You were nodding almost immediately, excitement filling your veins. As if you wouldn’t go pretty much anywhere with Cale if he asked you to. “Good.” He grinned. “I’ll make all the plans and let you know the exact dates.”

Standing, he pulled you to your feet and wrapped his arms around you.

“Our first vacation together as a couple. I can’t wait.” He breathed, kissing you softly but deeply.

“Hopefully it’s just the first of our many adventures.” You murmured against his lips. Cale continued to kiss you until your knees started to go weak before he pulled away, moving to clean up your dishes. “I can do that.” You insisted. “You cooked.”

Your attempt to grab the dishes failed when Cale dodged your hands and moved inside.

“Relax sweetheart. I got it.” He called, and you shook your head feeling spoiled. Little gestures like tonight meant worlds more to you than any material present ever could and you felt blessed that Cale always seemed to want to do things to show you just how important you were. Letting yourself back inside, you moved through the living room where the picture Cale gave you last week was now settled among so many others. While not every photo included Cale, a good number of them did and it was amazing to see just how far your relationship had come.

Pictures weren’t the only things you had that revealed the depth of your friendship. Moving into the guest bedroom, you sat down on the bed, your fingers immediately drifting over the fabric of the quilt you’d found stored in one of your boxes from your childhood home. It was made of every jersey Cale had ever worn, even including the avs. You yourself had worn pretty much every one of these jerseys as you cheered Cale on from the bleachers.

Lost in thought about all of those weekends and afternoons spent at various rinks you missed Cale searching for you.

“What are you doing in here?” Cale murmured, his body leaning against the doorframe.

“Just thinking…” You responded, smiling over at him fondly. You felt Cale’s eyes just take you in before he realized just what you were sitting on. He had never seen your quilt before so you watched as his eyes went wide.

“This is…” He cut himself off and you reached out to him, drawing him further into the room.

“The summation of all of the years I spent freezing my butt off while supporting my best friend.” You ribbed him, your fingers running along his abs as he stood in front of you. Cale had a mystified expression on his face and you reached for his hands, holding them in your own. “I’ve always been so proud of you, you know that right?” You insisted. “Like my family has always joked that being your biggest fan is one of my defining personality traits.”

Sliding to your feet in the limited space between Cale’s body and the bed frame, you gently pressed a kiss to his lips.

“My mom saved all of the jerseys and I guess when I was in college she sewed them all together to make this.” You explained. “I got it shortly after I graduated but I forgot about it for a while. Then I found it while unpacking and decided it would be perfect in here.” It was something sentimental and it made you feel even more like this home was a place for the two of you. It was a piece of Cale present even when he couldn’t be.

Cale’s only response was to kiss you again, his hands pulling your body close with the sort of touch that made you feel both powerful and powerless at the same time. The more time you spent with him, the more all of those suppressed feelings rose to the surface ready to sweep you away. You weren’t ready to admit it, even to yourself, but a nagging voice in the back of your mind was getting louder and louder by the day with one clear message: you love him.

Pulling back from the kiss you let out a long yawn, your eyes blinking slowly.

“Someone really is tired.” Cale murmured, his arms wrapping around you snugly. Nodding against his chest, you relaxed against him, some of the tension in your body slowly slipping away.

“I need a shower though…so I can’t go to bed.” You mumbled, your words muffled by his shirt. Cale still heard you though because suddenly he was scooping you up bridal style and carrying you into the bathroom, setting you down on the vanity. After closing the bathroom door behind him, Cale opened the shower door and reached in to turn the water on.

Before he’d even turned back to you, you were already certain that he had plans for the two of you to shower together. That was confirmed when Cale removed his clothes before slipping his hands under your ass to slide your dress over your head. Gentle hands pulled your undergarments off as well before falling to your waist to carefully set you onto your feet on the bathroom tile.

Checking the water temperature, Cale stepped in, pulling you with him under the spray. The sight of his wet body in front of you made your mind go blank. You knew you were lucky, but god…the sight of him was mindboggling.

“Are you going to shower or stare at me?” Cale prodded, leaning down to kiss you quickly but firmly. Rolling your eyes, you wet your hair before stepping from under the water to get shampoo. “Just hold still.” Cale directed, his hands already covered in a soapy lather. Watching him, you felt his fingers run through your hair before they lightly scraped at your scalp, massaging gently.

“That feels good.” You hummed, tilting your head a bit into his hands. As more stress left your body, Cale guided you back under the spray until all of the soap was washed down the drain. He repeated the process with your conditioner, making sure not to coat your roots, lazy kisses killing time before it too was washed away.

Quickly washing your face yourself, you turned to find him squeezing your body wash into his palm. Though the feeling of his hands rubbing over your back was innocent enough, by the time you turned to face him you were relaxed and on edge all at the same time. His hands on your breasts drew an unsolicited moan from your throat and immediately his eyes flashed with lust.

You couldn’t tell from his behavior though, his touch remaining light and caring as he drew his hands up and down your body, lathering you in soap. Though you were still exhausted, as you rinsed off you couldn’t help but feel that uptick in heart rate and tingle all over your body that signaled your desire.

“Remind me to shower with you more often.” You said softly, reaching out for him. “That was really nice…thank you.”

“Such a hardship,” Cale replied, an easy grin on his face. It was impossible not to take what he had tee’d up for you and you dropped your fingers to trail along the v of his hips.

“I mean something is hard.” You smirked, just barely grazing your fingers against his semi-erect dick. Cale immediately let out a low grunt in response. Eyeing him for a moment, you moved to drop to your knees but Cale’s hands stopped you, quickly pressing you against the shower wall. “Cale…let me take care of you…you’ve been taking care of me all night.” You requested.

“And I’m not done yet,” Cale announced. A shiver ran through your body and you bit your lip watching as he moved to step out of the shower. As your mind flashed to the condoms in the vanity drawer, you thought about your upcoming trip.

A split-second decision had you reaching out to stop him, and this time when you bit your lip it was because you were slightly nervous. You hadn’t been with anyone in a long time besides Cale and you knew you were clean. You were fairly certain he hadn’t been with anyone else besides you in the last few months and you knew the Avs players were tested fairly regularly for all manner of things. And with your birth control given via shot every three months the risk of pregnancy was extremely low.

“Do you not want to…?” Cale asked. It was clear that you had confused him, so swallowing hard you moved to remedy that.

“I do. Of course I do.” You assured him. “I just…I was thinking…” There really wasn’t any reason for you to be nervous, you were both adults who could have this kind of conversation, so swallowing hard you just spit it out. “I get a birth control shot every three months and I know I’m clean. I’m pretty confident you are as well and it would be nice not to have to stop to reach for a condom every time if you’re comfortable going without.” Taking another deep breath you spoke once more before stopping to await Cale’s response. “Of course if you want to continue using them we can…your comfort is important to me.”

It seemed to take Cale a minute to process what you threw at him but after a moment he nodded and stepped toward you again.

“Are you sure?” He questioned, his eyes revealing that he wasn’t fully certain but he was definitely intrigued.

“That my birth control is effective? Yes. That I want to feel you and only you? Yes. That none of that matters unless you’re okay going bare? Triple yes. So go grab a condom, Cale.” You murmured pushing him toward the shower door.

When he resisted your push you sighed, the sound choked off as Cale’s mouth came down with a demand that had been absent before.

“I’m okay with it.” He insisted when you finally pulled away to breathe. Searching his gaze, all those hesitations that were there before were gone, leaving nothing but desire.

“Then why don’t you take care of me like you promised.” You suggested.

Cale’s strong hands fell to your thighs, hauling them up his body and around his waist as he leveraged you against the shower wall. It was a show of athletic strength that sent a wave of moisture to your core, one that Cale quickly discovered as he brushed his thumb through your folds, ending at your clit.

“You wet enough for me?” Cale asked, his nose bumping against yours as he pressed a needy kiss to your lips. Feeling him hard, pressed between you, it was impossible to do anything but nod. He didn’t move, however, until you eventually found your voice.

“Need you inside me.” You commanded softly. Cale started to shift but then cursed lowly.

“Spit in your hand.” He directed. Realizing he was concerned that the water was washing away some of the natural lubrication you followed his instructions, spitting and then wrapping your hand around cock. You’d barely started removing your fingers when he pulled back to shift and adjusting your grip you settled his tip at your entrance. He slipped through your fingers as he pressed up inside of you and the dual sensation drew a sharp moan from deep in your belly.

The lack of a condom wasn’t super noticeable, but you could have sworn he felt a little hotter and the friction was a little smoother without a barrier between you. They were minute differences but just as you were aware of every other sensation Cale’s body created, you were aware of those as well.

As Cale thrust his hips against yours you took in the difference between this time and your previous two times together. Of course the location was different, but while the first time had been need driven and the second beyond soft, this was a combination of the two. The physical exertion required on Cale’s part meant that he couldn’t take his time, but he was also acting ever so gentle, truly focused on taking care of you.

Determined to do your part, you wrapped your arms around Cale’s neck, kissing him as you rolled your hips down against his. Each hip roll created slightly different timing against Cale’s thrusts and the variety of angles created drew curses from your lips.

“Fuck…” You moaned when one angle hit a particularly good spot deep inside of you. “Right there…” Holding your hips still, Cale’s next thrusts hit the same spot and your head fell back against the shower wall. One, two, three more thrusts had you screaming Cale’s name, your orgasm crashing down on you hard, taking with it all of the frustration you’d been feeling before.

With a pleasurable numbness settling in your muscles, it took you a moment to realize that Cale was still grinding again you, seeking his own orgasm. Though you were slightly oversensitive, you wanted Cale to orgasm so you trailed your hands over his arms, appreciating just how big and broad he was. His body held such power that it both amazed you and turned you on.

Feeling Cale’s strain you pulled him into a kiss, your hand dropping between your bodies to gently roll his balls between your fingers.

“You gonna fill me up handsome?” You breathed against his mouth. “Gonna let me feel your cum deep inside me?” His balls twitched and he groaned your name. With one more half-thrust you felt him pulse inside you and his hot sticky semen coated your inner walls. The foreign feeling sent a jolt through you and caused a surprise orgasm to ripple through your body, completely exhausting you.

“Shit…” Cale grunted, his forehead pressed against your own. A long moment passed as Cale worked to collect his breath. “Can you stand?” He posed the question softly, his hands shifting on your thighs so that he didn’t drop you.

You honestly weren’t sure your legs would support your weight so you shook your head burying it against Cale’s shoulder.

“Alright,” Cale replied, shifting one hand quickly to turn the water off, which was surprisingly still warm, before placing it back on your thigh, elbowing the door open. Slowly pulling out of you, he set you down on the vanity, his hands coming up to cup your cheeks as he kissed you. As soon as he felt you shiver, however, he reached behind him for a towel, quickly wrapping it around your body. Retrieving a warm rag he cleaned you up first before wiping himself down. You could still feel his cum slowly dripping out of you, leaving you feeling dirty but in a good way. That was by far the most intimate thing you had ever done and it felt you feeling even closer to Cale than you were before.

Wrapped in a towel, you watched Cale quickly dry himself off before throwing his clothes back on. Then he turned his attention to you, carefully drying you off as well before lifting and carrying you back into your bedroom. Since you’d been too tired to make your bed this morning, he was able to easily settle you between the sheets. The moment your head hit the pillow you felt your eyes start to struggle to remain open. When Cale moved to your bedroom door your heart sank.

“Are you leaving me?” You whimpered, tears forming in your eyes. Immediately Cale paused in the doorway, turning to face you.

“Sweetheart…I’m just hanging the towels up and grabbing your dirty clothes. I’ll be right back.” Nodding, you closed your eyes, not opening them until the bed shifted beside you. “Come here.” Cale murmured opening his arms to you. You settled against him, your head on his shoulder as he kissed your forehead.

“Sunshine…I’m not just going to leave you after sex okay. Not unless I absolutely have to.” You knew that, you did, you were just exhausted and feeling vulnerable after that experience. Cale’s fingers stroked through your still wet hair and you felt yourself starting to doze against him, his rhythmic breath soothing you.

“I should go home at some point though.” Cale finally admitted. “Otherwise mom is going to ask a lot of questions.”

“Can’t you just tell her you fell asleep watching a movie and didn’t want to drive back when you woke up because it was the middle of the night?” You pleaded, pout settling onto your face. For a moment you thought Cale was going to resist, but then he kissed the pout right off of your face.

“Yeah, I can do that.” He agreed. “Let me go lock your doors and I’ll be right back.’’ He stated, slipping out from under you. When he returned it was with a bottle of water, which he placed on your bedside table before moving around the bed, shedding all of his clothes except his boxers. As he slid into bed, you snuggled against him once more, and this time you stopped fighting sleep knowing that he was right here with you. Right where he was supposed to be.


	9. Chapter 9

Dating Cale honestly felt like the most natural thing in the world. Some days, he’d meet you for lunch between clients after finishing a workout, others he’d come over for dinner or to watch a movie. Everything just fit and immediately felt like this was how things had always been. You sometimes forgot that you’d been together less than a month.

Two weeks after Cale had surprised you with dinner, your phone buzzed with a text containing the dates for your trip to Iceland. From that moment forward, you felt like you had stepped into a whirlwind. Suddenly your life was full of things like requesting time off work, googling what an appropriate wardrobe would be, shopping for the things you needed but didn’t have. Then there was the packing, trying to fit a week and a half worth of clothes into a single suitcase and your usual carry on, making sure you didn’t forget the plug adapter for your phone or worse your passport. 

They weren’t bad things, but they were out of the ordinary and you were looking forward to just being on vacation with Cale, the stress that came with vacationing put behind you. 

As Cale loaded your bags into his parent’s car on a Tuesday in mid-June, you finally felt your excitement kick in. Laura and Gary were dropping the two of you at the airport so that you didn’t have to worry about parking, and as Gary drove Laura rambled on about how pleased she was that the two of you were taking this trip together and how she was certain it was exactly what the two of you needed. When Cale mouthed that she ‘didn’t know the half of it’, it took everything in you not to bust out laughing. 

Assuring Laura that you would take plenty of pictures, you hugged both her and Gary before heading with Cale through the airport. After going through security, checking your luggage, and finding the proper gate, you settled into Cale’s side to wait for your flight to board. Cale had gotten an evening flight, allowing you to sleep the eight hours it took to fly across the continent. You were grateful for it now but you were certain you would be even more grateful when you landed, knowing that with the time difference you would spend 8 hours on a plane but arrive 14 hours after you had left. 

Sleeping on the flight, your head resting on Cale’s shoulder, made time move quickly and before you knew it you were fastening your seatbelt for the landing at Keflavik Airport. 

“We’re here.” You whispered excitedly, curious as to what was awaiting you when you stepped outside of the airport. 

“Someone’s excited,” Cale said, a soft grin on his face as he grabbed your carryon for you as the two of you navigated through the airport. Collecting your luggage, you followed Cale over to a rental car desk and watched as he chatted with an agent. He signed a few papers and handed over his credit card, and soon he was handed keys, the two of you making your way out to a lot to pick up your vehicle for the trip. 

“Ten days vacation with my boyfriend…you could say I’m a little excited.” You mused, stretching to kiss him after loading your bags into the trunk of the SUV. It was just after 10 am and the weather outside was brisk but comfortable. Cale kissed you back before pulling a map from his carryon bag. 

“Ready to be my navigator?” He questioned, closing the trunk before moving to the passenger side, opening your door. “We’ve got an hour drive into Reykjavik and then I was thinking food…?” Cale suggested. A late breakfast/early lunch sounded wonderful and you quickly agreed, sliding into the vehicle. It took Cale a few minutes to get comfortable behind the wheel in a new country, but once he did, he dropped his hand to the center console, allowing you to lace your fingers in his as you watched the countryside pass by. It was a quiet drive, comfortable, the two of you just enjoying each other’s presence. 

When you finally reached the capital city Cale found a public parking lot and the two of you ventured out on foot in search of food. Cale had clearly done his research because he led you toward the waterfront, straight to a tiny little food stand. Ordering you each a hot dog, Cale explained that it was Iceland’s national food and therefore seemed the natural choice for your first meal in the country. 

“You sure just one is gonna be enough for you?” You joked, knowing that his athlete’s stomach burned through calories faster than you could ever dream. 

“If I’m still hungry I’ll go back for another.” Cale simply shrugged and as the two of you settled into a picnic table with your food, you just shook your head, smiling over at him. Cale did indeed go back for another and you failed to bite back the laughter when he glared at you just a little. 

“I’d rather not see what you’re like when hangry so please, eat as much as you need to.” You giggled, looking around as you waited for him to finish. This was the biggest city in the entire country but yet it didn’t feel stressful or crowded like you’d experienced in other cities. Instead, it was a place you very much wanted to spend time exploring, enjoying the chance to witness just a taste of daily life here. 

When Cale finished, you disposed of your trash before heading back out onto the street. Leaning against his side, you looked up at him for direction, not sure what the plan was for the day. 

“Want to just walk around the city?” Cale inquired. Looking at him it was clear that he didn’t really have a plan and you twisted, planting your hands on his chest as you peered up at him. 

“And here I thought you planned this trip.” You teased. It wasn’t that you opposed his idea, you just had to give him a little bit of a hard time just because you could. 

“I did plan this trip.” Cale murmured. “I planned this trip to have the flexibility for us to go where we wanted to go and see what we wanted to see without having to worry about following a strict schedule. I’ve got a rough outline…or did you not look at the map?” He teased right back. As his hand drifted down to your lower back he dropped his head to kiss you. You were still getting used to this whole being able to kiss him in public thing, but you liked it. “I wasn’t sure how tired we’d be…so I figured we’d just start local, check into the hotel, and play it by ear from there. Okay?” 

“Okay.” You smiled, pecking his lips once more before settling back onto your feet. “So which way Mr. Makar?” 

With your hands entwined, you walked through the city of Reykjavik, taking in all of the sights it had to offer. At the Hallgrímskirkja church, you marveled at the height of the ceiling while Cale joked that it was like staring at a graph in math class all over again. Smacking him gently, you insisted on taking your first selfie, laughing at each other as you did. Already, your brain was cataloging that there would be two distinct folders of photos on your phone, one you could show the parents and one you could not. 

As you passed the statue of Leif Eríkson, you rambled on to Cale about how historians had new leads on where Vinland actually was located and how the Vikings had clearly discovered North America long before many of the other European explorers had. 

“Someone has been watching documentaries lately.” Cale smiled, his grin fond. “History was always one of your favorite classes wasn’t it?” You nodded in agreement and noted that Cale seemed unbothered by you playing mini historian. The fact that he remembered what your favorite classes were in school kind of surprised you. But this was one of the many reasons why this trip was such a good thing, you were getting to reacquaint yourselves with each other and learn things you didn’t know before. 

Soon, you walked through what seemed to be a shopping district. It was quaint and quiet and reminded you more of a small suburb than a big city. The buildings were all small and cute and there was graffiti art all over the place. When you reached Tjörnin Pond, you pulled Cale to sit on a bench for a few minutes, more wanting to just sit and take things in than actually needing to rest. 

“This place is gorgeous.” You breathed, your linked hands resting on Cale’s thigh. “Thank you for bringing me.” 

“Thank you for coming,” Cale replied, his lips pressing against the top of your head. Sitting for a few more minutes, you headed off again, continuing along until you reached the harbor. There you saw the Harpa concert hall, a modern glass building whose panes of multicolored glass shone brightly under the midday sun, and the Sun Voyager sculpture which resembled a Viking ship floating on water. 

Having essentially circled back to where you had started, the two of you made the decision to head back to the car. You’d killed enough time wandering around that you could check into the hotel and so you headed that way. 

You hated to admit it but Cale might have been right. The moment you settled into the car, you felt yourself immediately start to doze off. You knew logically that you shouldn’t be tired, but yet that was exactly what you felt. You didn’t even realize you’d fallen asleep in the short drive over to the hotel until Cale was unbuckling you. 

“Hey sleepy.” He whispered. “I already checked in and took our bags up. You wanna go up and take a nap?” Cale’s question was answered only by a look of exhaustion on your face. It didn’t take long to reach your room and once you had, you flopped down on the bed, sighing softly at its comfort. Cale’s hands slipped your shoes off your feet and he chuckled, the weight of his gaze causing you to shift. 

“Don’t even say it.” You mumbled. 

“I didn’t say anything.” Cale defended. “Are we calling it a day though and just getting an early start tomorrow?” He asked. Though you wanted to keep going, you didn’t think your body agreed and so you sighed shrugging. 

“Yeah…I think so.” You pouted. The pout was pulled from your lips though when Cale stretched, the bottom of his shirt riding up to reveal the fine happy trail that started just below his belly button and disappeared under the waistband of his grey sweats. It was amazing how easily even a peek at your boyfriend’s body made everything better. 

“What do you want for dinner? I’ll run out and bring food back.” Cale insisted, his fingers running through his somewhat sweaty hair. 

“I’d say surprise me but I’m not sure that’s such a great idea in a foreign country.” You joked. “I don’t know. I’m not that hungry.” You whined. Or if you were hungry you just didn’t know what sounded good. 

“Women…” Cale mumbled teasingly under his breath. “I’m going to see if I can track down a couple salads. Will that work?” Your stomach growled at his suggestion and you both took that as your body’s agreement. “Okay. I’ll be back soon.” Cale stated, leaning down to kiss you before slipping from the hotel room. 

As your head fell back against the pillows, you knew you could easily just go right back to sleep. At the same time though, you couldn’t help but feel gross from the travel and from spending the afternoon walking around. So you forced yourself up and into the small bathroom to wash off. 

By the time you finished and had slipped into pajamas, Cale had returned with food. Though you weren’t super hungry, you forced yourself to eat before finally crawling into bed. 

You weren’t sure what time you fell asleep, though you knew it had to be ungodly early. When you awoke, it was to the feeling of Cale’s arms tightening around your body, his voice low and smooth in your ear. 

“Will you stop the tossing and turning…it’s too freaking early.” Letting out a hum of confusion, you twisted in his arms, your head landing against his shoulder. “It’s 3 am…and I’m awake because you can’t stay still…” Cale grumbled. “I know I said we’d get an early start but I didn’t mean this early.” He added. “So can you please tell your body to knock it off.” 

“Sorry.” You whispered, forcing yourself to go rigid against him. Apparently, your body had had enough sleep already and decided that any extra sleep would not be the peaceful kind. Cale’s fingers slid up your back and he let out a grunt of frustration when his touch only caused you to stiffen further. 

“Sweetheart…would you relax?” He murmured. 

“I’m trying.” You mumbled back, turning back over to face away from Cale with a sigh. You wanted to sleep, you did, but now that you were half awake, your brain was filled with anxious thoughts and silly worries. It had been less than five minutes since he woke you when you felt Cale’s lips on your shoulder and once again his arms tightened around you. 

“Let me help…” He murmured, his fingers shifting to brush against your stomach. 

“Cale I…” Whatever complaint was on the tip of your tongue was silenced when Cale rolled you underneath his body, his mouth seeking yours. His kiss was lazy and soft and he didn’t fully pull away until your body had turned to jello. 

“Do you trust me?” Cale questioned softly. You could only nod because of course you trusted him. You trusted him more than anyone else you’d ever been with. “Then let me help you relax so we can both sleep.” He pressed, one hand sliding down to rest against your hip. 

It was his blue eyes that revealed what he was planning on doing and you caught his cheek in your palm before he could start sliding down the bed. 

“Cale…you don’t…” 

“Sweetheart…if you think I haven’t thought about what it would be like to bury my face in your sweet pussy a million times in the last few months you’re insane. I want to…will you let me?” 

Nerves ran through your body at the thought of trying this for the first time with Cale. What if you didn’t like it? You’d failed to remind him that he wasn’t the only one inexperienced in this area, so it would be a blow to his ego for sure if this went badly. Suddenly, the image of Cale licking your fluids from his fingers popped into your head chased by the fantasy of his head between your thighs. All you had to do was agree for that fantasy to become a reality. Before you could even verbalize your assent, Cale had started sliding down the bed, dragging the blankets with him. 

“If I do something you don’t like just tell me.” He breathed, his fingers tugging your shorts and panties off of your body quickly. 

Nude from the waist down, Cale trailed his mouth across your stomach as he settled himself between your parted thighs. Then he jumped down to your left knee, nipping his way up your inner thigh before repeating the process with the other. 

He was both teasing you and giving you the chance to stop him if you needed to but now that he was there, you wanted nothing more than to see just what kind of damage he could do. 

“Cale, please…” You gasped, needing so much more than what he was giving you. 

“That’s my girl,” Cale mumbled, his eyes twinkling as he looked up at you. “I want to hear you, sweetheart.” The feeling of his breath blowing hot over your core made you shiver and your back bowed off of the bed toward him. Pinning your hips down under the weight of his forearm, Cale kissed your stomach one more time before sliding down, his tongue licking broadly through your folds. 

Squirming under him, your brain attempted to process whether that was a good or a bad sensation. It settled for the word different as you felt waves of heat roll through you when Cale’s mouth latched onto your clit, sucking gently. 

“That…more of that.” You pleaded. Following your direction, Cale focused in on your clit, sucking it between his lips again. Slowly things started to go hazy as he pressed soft kisses and little licks to your heated flesh before returning to the suction. There was no rush to his actions, and you reached down, your fingers tugging at his hair as he lapped lazily at your core. 

A grunt spilled from Cale’s mouth in response to your tug and the vibration rippled through your body, sending sparks across your skin. Sliding his other arm around your hip, Cale drew your leg over his shoulder. The change in angle must have allowed Cale better access because you felt his tongue press inside of you, your hips attempting to jolt out of his grasp at the feeling. 

The feeling of his tongue fucking inside of you made you whimper and when Cale pulled back to breathe, you could feel the growing confidence rolling off of him. 

“You doing okay?” He questioned softly, waiting for your answer as he pressed gentle kisses to your thigh again. 

“More Cale please…” You whined. Smirking Cale sucked at your clit harder than he had before. 

“More of this…” He questioned quickly before sliding his tongue back inside of you, flicking at your slick internal walls. “Or more of that.” He asked, pulling back once more to breathe. Your chest was heaving, your breath hitching with the feelings Cale’s mouth on you created. 

“Both…god both Cale…” You pleaded. 

“Okay…just relax and let go for me okay sweet girl…” Cale resumed his easy pace, switching between sucking your clit and pressing his tongue inside you. As your body responded to his actions, he adjusted speeding up and slowing down until you were crying out his name, your body shaking with the strength of your orgasm. 

Coming down, you shoved at Cale’s head as he licked over you slowly and carefully, cleaning you up. When he finally crawled up the bed, the grin on his face was a mile wide and his thumb brushed against your cheek. 

“Was that okay?” He asked, nerves showing only in his gaze. 

“If I didn’t know that was your first time…I wouldn’t believe it.” You said, voice slightly hoarse. Cale’s cheeks flushed even deeper and you leaned up to kiss him, tasting yourself on his tongue. 

“It’ll be better next time,” Cale promised, laying flat on his back again, pulling you into his side. Snuggling against him, you certainly felt calmer than before, a yawn spilling from your throat. As you drifted back to sleep you heard Cale whisper ‘thank you’ in your ear and the butterflies in your stomach fluttered at being able to give Cale an experience he’d never had before. 

Everything with him was new and different and you couldn’t ask for anything more. Just like this was only the start of your relationship, it was only the start of your vacation and you could only see both getting better with each and every day. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Vacation Pictures: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/627180011083939840/iceland-vacation-day-1


	10. Chapter 10

You started your day - for the second time - when Cale’s thumb brushed over your cheek and his lips ghosted over yours. As your eyes cracked open, you realized he was standing beside the bed already fully dressed. 

“Time to get up sunshine…we have a busy day of exploring ahead of us.” He chuckled as you groaned, stretching lazily as your brain struggled to wake up. A glance at your phone revealed that it was 5:45 in the morning, not even two hours since you fell back asleep. “Get up and get dressed and we can go get coffee and breakfast.” Cale lured, smiling so brightly that you wanted to smack it right off of his face. 

Fifteen minutes later, you were pulling on socks and a pair of hiking sneakers while Cale finished throwing things into the backpack he’d brought as a carry-on. You had already pulled on the pair of leggings, t-shirt, and fleece that Cale had laid out for you and had quickly fixed your hair adding a combo foundation/sunscreen to your face so that you didn’t look entirely dead. 

Sliding out of the hotel room, you stopped down at the continental breakfast for sustenance and coffee. Not long after that, you were sliding back into the rental vehicle as Cale tossed the bag in the backseat and loaded up an address into his phone’s GPS. 

“So can I ask where we’re going?” You inquired, yawning as you looked over at your boyfriend. 

“We’re doing the Golden Circle today…but starting with a little bit of a detour first.” Despite your look to continue, Cale didn’t add anything else to that. Instead, he handed you his phone with Spotify open so that you could pick the music for the trip. 

For the next 45 minutes, you jammed out while looking out the window as the views of Iceland passed by. It was too early to have any form of intelligent conversation but as always the silence was comfortable. Eventually, Cale pulled into a parking lot and climbed out of the car, grabbing the backpack from the backseat. 

“You ready for a hike?” He questioned, lacing his fingers through yours. 

“Let’s do it.” You agreed, hoping your body was prepared for what you were about to put it through. It was a brisk, 14 degrees Celsius/57 degrees Fahrenheit outside but with your layered clothing it was comfortable. 

The start of the hike was relatively flat and continued a good distance before you descended down the hillside and through a stone archway. Continuing your descent you reached a river, one you evidently had to cross to continue. Slipping off your shoes and socks, you rolled your pants up. With Cale behind you, you grabbed onto the guidewire and started making your way across the rocks until you reached a log halfway across. Reaching the other side of the swiftly flowing river, you threw your shoe laden hands up in the air in triumph. 

“That was…an experience.” You mused, taking a towel Cale offered to dry off your feet before sliding back into more proper footwear. 

“Now comes the hard part….up.” Cale declared, taking the towel from you to dry off his own feet. 

“I was afraid you were going to say that.” You joked, stretching to peck his lips. “Just…don’t let me fall.” You pleaded lightly. 

“You’re not going anywhere,” Cale promised. “And the view will be worth it.” 

Sharing sips from the bottle of water Cale had brought, you started the long ascent. Holding the ropes as you climbed, you made slow but steady progress. Without you saying a word about it, Cale slowed down his pace when you needed him to and he reached out a hand to help when the next step was just a little too far or too high. Climbing over some particularly high rocks, Cale had one hand in yours while his other guided you up by your waist, and you stumbled half a step, your chest pressing against his as a anxious giggle spilled from your throat. 

By the time you reached the first marker point you were in desperate need of more water and eagerly took the bottle as Cale pulled it out of the backpack. It was only after you had taken a handful of sips that you actually looked at where you were. Off in the distance was a magnificent waterfall, steep cliffs surrounding it on either side. In the other direction, you could see all the way out to the ocean, just miles and miles of the most stunning terrain. It was absolutely breathtaking and already so worth the burn in your quads you were going to be feeling for days. 

As you turned back to stare at the waterfall again, Cale’s arms slipped around your waist and he stood pressed against your back, his chin resting on top of your head. 

“What do you think?” He murmured. 

“It’s incredible.” You whispered, relaxing back against him. 

“I knew you’d like it.” Cale added, his breaths long and deep, just taking it all in. 

As you stood wrapped in Cale’s arms, in wonder of how a place like this could exist, you felt a wave of emotion crash over you, hitting you as hard as the water flowing over the falls hit the rocks below. 

You were in love with him. 

A life with him, one full of adventure and wonder. Knowing he was the one person who knew you better than yourself, knowing he would always be there to support you physically and emotionally. This was all you could ever ask for, could ever want.

You’d loved him from the moment you first held him 21 years ago. That love had changed in substance as you went from playing house with Cale as your partner in crime and Taylor as your baby to biting your nails trying to quell your nerves as you watched him skate in his first collegiate hockey game. Now, that love was different still: deeper, stronger, all-consuming, intimate. You were learning every little piece of him and he was learning the same about you. 

It was too soon to say the words aloud, but you could no longer deny it in your own mind. You didn’t just love your best friend, you were head over heels _in love_ with him. 

Twisting in his arms, you wrapped an arm around his neck, pulling him down into a soft kiss. Just because you weren’t ready to say it didn’t mean you couldn’t express it through your actions. 

You didn’t even realize that Cale had messed around with his phone to take a picture until you had pulled away, cheeks warm from both the exertion and the kiss. It was a stunning photo, one you were itching to make your home screen, but one that certainly was going in the file not to be seen by your parents. Cale took a few more pictures before the two of you continued to climb. 

When you reached the top of the falls, you took even more pictures, sitting down by the side of the river to munch on one of the protein bars Cale had packed. After a few more minutes rest, Cale pulled you back to your feet and the two of you turned around to retrace your steps all the way back down, across the river once more, and then up to the car. 

Your hike had taken you the entire morning, but had been so worth it. Your epiphany aside, spending time with Cale like this was something you had always treasured but that had been in short supply as the two of you got older. So between the bonding time and getting to take in all of the incredible views you’d just witnessed, you were certainly feeling blessed even if you were already sore.

Climbing back in the car, you insisted Cale find somewhere with a bathroom before your next stop of the day. It hadn’t bothered you while you were moving but with draining an entire bottle of water while hiking and the constant sound of water in your ears all day…you really needed to pee. Cale had laughed at you, but complied willingly, pulling up his phone to find someplace for the two of you to stop. 

After emptying your bladder and downing another protein bar, you settled in for the short drive to Þingvellir National Park. Having pulled out Cale’s map with the Golden Circle route, you now had some idea of at least the general locations you were going to see. 

As Cale pulled the car into a parking lot, you got a glimpse of what made this place so special. But it wasn’t until you had gotten out and actually started walking around that you realized how truly impressive it was. This was one of the few locations globally where you could actually see the tectonic plates. Jagged rocks thrust out of the landscape appearing on either side of you as you tugged Cale along the path. It was sights like this that made you realize how big and powerful nature was and just how small you were as humans in comparison. 

Having already seen one incredible waterfall today, you decided to forgo the walk to see the one here in the park and instead just took a couple of photos before heading back to the car to continue on to the next stop of your journey. 

Back in the car, you once again took over Cale’s phone for music, his spotify blasting as you drove through Iceland with the windows down, enjoying the beautiful afternoon. Singing along to the music, you kicked your feet up and leaned against your door, partly watching your surroundings and partly watching your boyfriend. He’d relaxed considerably behind the wheel since yesterday and you’d never noticed how sexy he looked while driving before. It wasn’t something you could explain, it was just something that hit you straight in the gut. 

Your next stop was to see Geysir, the Icelandic version of Old Faithful. The strong smell of sulfur filled the air and steam rose from the vents and pools of bubbling water in the ground. 

“We don’t have to stick around here long.” Cale insisted, his hand rubbing over your lower back as you headed toward the largest geyser in the park. Like clockwork, the geyser erupts every six minutes, so it wasn’t too much of a wait to see it before heading back to the car. 

Reaching for the passenger door, you were stopped when Cale grabbed your wrist and tugged your body closer to his. 

“Are you okay?” He questioned, palm cupping your cheek. 

“Yeah Cale I’m good.” You assured him. “It’s just not the most pleasant scent.” Kissing him softly, you brushed your nose against his for a moment before settling back onto your heels. “Now let’s get out of here.” It didn’t escape your notice, that once again Cale was checking on you, making sure that you were always okay. The way he cared for those around him was one of the things you loved most about him. 

It was a really short, ten-minute car ride to the next stop of the day. Though you had skipped the small waterfall at Þingvellir National Park, Gullfoss Falls had made Cale’s list of things to see. Unlike Glymur falls which had been tall and narrow, Gullfoss was a fairly shallow set of falls, that stretched over a much wider area. With the sun shining the way it was, rainbows appeared wherever there was mist from the falls. Everything in Iceland was absolutely beautiful; just being here made you feel more grounded, centered. It was absolutely the perfect trip so far to really spend time with Cale as a couple rather than just friends. This time, the photos you took were silly ones to show your families. But like your last few stops, you didn’t linger long before climbing into the car to head to the final stop of the Circle. 

You must have dozed off during that leg of the drive because when you opened your eyes, you were once again parked in a new location. Cale was looking at his phone, but when he realized you were awake, his eyes turned soft as he glanced over at you. 

“What?” You inquired, your back popping as you stretched. Cale didn’t respond, simply shaking his head as he turned the car off and moved to climb out of the car. 

“You coming?” He eventually called, turning back to face you about ten feet in front of the car. Rolling your eyes, you quickly moved to catch up with him and after paying a small conservation fee, you stepped off the paved lot onto a path. In front of you was a crater lake, its deep blue water surrounded by red rock and green vegetation. 

“Okay…don’t get me wrong…everything we’ve seen today has been gorgeous…but I think this is my favorite.” You breathed. 

“Yeah?” Cale murmured. You nodded in response, tucking yourself into his side as the two of you just admired the sight in front of you. Waterfalls were great, geysers and faults were cool, but this…this was on another level. 

Eventually you’d made your way back to Reykjavik after lingering for awhile at the Crater.

It had been a long day, and you were ready to get some dinner and just relax before maybe going to bed early. Sinking into one of the chairs in your hotel room, you sighed in relief and toed off your shoes. Cale had disappeared into the bathroom and when you looked up he was leaning against the wall, a pensive look on his face. 

“So…are you gonna hate me if I tell you we have one more thing on the agenda for today?” He asked. When your shoulders sunk, he chuckled and moved across the room to kiss you. “I promise it’s something relaxing.” He murmured against your lips. 

“What is it?” You groaned. 

“Dinner followed by a little dip…” You had to admit you were intrigued and you were dying to show off the new suits you’d bought for the trip. 

“You kill me Cale.” You sighed, though the smile pulling at the corners of your mouth gave away your compliance. Cale pulled you to your feet and his hands landed on your hips as he looked down at you, content smile traveling all the way up to his eyes. “You’re lucky I really really like you.” You teased. 

“Hmm is that right?” Cale murmured back as his mouth dropped to yours for a kiss that lingered, his tongue exploring your mouth. Sighing into the kiss, for a moment you let yourself get lost in the feeling of it all. When the kiss broke, you stood in Cale’s arms, your fingers playing with the hairs at the back of his neck. The way he was looking at you made you shiver and knowing you’d never leave this hotel room if you didn’t start moving, you pulled away. 

“Do I need to stay dressed like this or can I change into something a little nicer?” You questioned.

“You can change if you want.” Cale declared, fingers running through his hair. Digging through your suitcase, you grabbed your swimsuit and one of the nice but still fairly casual dresses you’d packed before slipping into the bathroom. Sliding the suit on, you pulled the dress on over it before stepping back into the main room. 

“Will this work?” You asked as you slid your dirty clothes into a laundry bag. Cale still hadn’t responded by the time you’d found your sandals and slipped them on and when you looked over at him, his cheeks were flushed and his jaw was halfway to the ground. “Cale…” You prompted, eyebrows raised. 

“Shit…fuck…holy crap you’re beautiful.” Cale declared after snapping out of the daze he’d been in. If this simple dress had that much of an effect on him, you couldn’t wait to see how he responded to some of the other things you’d brought, suit included. 

“So it’ll work?” You repeated your question, giggling softly. 

“Yeah…I think that’ll work.” He agreed, shaking his head before moving to change as well. 

You’d lost count of how many times you’d been in and out of your rental car today, but as you climbed into the passenger seat again, you acknowledged that this time felt different. Once Cale had reached the open highway, his hand reached down to lace with yours. Anxious butterflies filled your stomach and it took some time before you realized why. 

This was your first real date. 

Sure you’d had lunch together, done dinner at your place, watched movies, this whole trip was kind of an extended date…but this was the first time you’d gone out together that truly felt like a date. 

It was silly to feel nervous, you’d been together for a month already and things were really good. Still, you couldnt’t shake that little bit of nervous energy. 

A few nerves were good though, and you decided to just make the most of them. About an hour after you’d left your hotel, Cale pulled into a parking lot again and the two of you made your way through a winding path surrounded by volcanic rock until you reached the doors for the Blue Lagoon. 

Dinner was the first part of this date which you were thankful for because you were starving. With views of the lagoon, high ceilings and a wall made of the same volcanic rock as outside, you settled into a table at the Lava Restaurant. 

Once glasses of wine were poured and main dishes were ordered, you smiled across the table at Cale. 

“I don’t know if I’ve…”

“You really are…” You both started speaking at the same time, and laughter spread between you as you each stopped to let the other speak. 

“Go ahead.” Cale insisted, his thumb brushing against your joined hands. 

“Thank you for all of this.” You breathed. “This trip is really special and I know you put a lot of thought and effort into planning it.” 

“You’re worth it.” Cale said blushing slightly. “This trip wouldn’t be nearly as fun with anyone else.” Reaching for your wine glass you held it up in a toast, waiting for Cale to mirror your action. 

“To us.” You murmured. “To adventures, laughter, and a little romance.” 

“To my beautiful girlfriend. My best friend. I’m so lucky you’re mine even though it took us awhile to figure it out.” Your heart pounded at Cale’s words but thankfully your food arrived before he had the chance to make you cry. 

Sharing your lamb fillet and Cale’s beef tenderloin, you both got to taste multiple examples of the rich Icelandic cuisine. Your main dishes were followed by a shared dessert of icelandic berries and chocolate. As Cale fed you a bite, you felt some of the caramel sauce hit the corner of your mouth. Before you could reach up to wipe it away, Cale had done it for you and your stomach twisted pleasantly at the feeling of his thumb against your skin. 

When your food was finished, you relaxed finishing off your glasses of wine while Cale told you a story from his time at UMass that you hadn’t heard before. Eventually though, you got up from the table and moved to head out to the lagoon itself. 

Since you both had suits on under your clothes already, it didn’t take long to put your things into a locker in the women’s changing area before meeting up with Cale. The moment he saw you, you watched him swallow hard, his eyes visibly darkening. 

“This. is. not. fair.” Cale choked out. Dragging him outside, your eyes went wide as you took in the sight in front of you. Pale blue water, dark rocks, it was absolutely stunning and you couldn’t wait to get in. 

Stepping down into the warm water you waited for Cale to join you, laughing to yourself as he stood on the cement looking completely awestruck. The water was perfect, it felt like you had stepped into a massive jacuzzi and the heat felt wonderful on your sore muscles. 

“You’re trying to give me a heart attack aren’t you?” Cale whispered, his voice dangerously low as he appeared behind you. 

“And just how would I do that?” You smirked, enjoying the ego stroking you were getting from Cale’s reactions. 

“You know how.” Cale mumbled. “You’re absolutely killing me right now.” 

You’d hoped to get some reaction out of Cale when you picked out this suit, but you hadn’t expected for him to lose his mind like this. Admittedly, the blue and white of the suit was even more fitting for this location than you had expected and you felt sexy and confident as Cale’s eyes lingered on you. 

Trailing your nails down Cale’s chest you pulled your bottom lip between your teeth as you smiled up at him. 

“If you like this…wait until you see what else I packed…” You suggested, slipping away from Cale to head over to the in-water bar for a drink, his growl resounding in your ears. 

Cale seemed to recover from his shock a little but not fully and the two of you spent close to two hours enjoying yourselves. You even convinced Cale to not only let you give him a silica mask, but to take a couple pictures with it on even though he was sure to be chirped if his teammates or even his brother ever saw them. 

Relaxed and happy, you left the lagoon to drive back to the hotel. That had been by far your favorite first date ever. And it was the best way to cap off a day that had been even better than yesterday. As you crawled into bed, your head resting on Cale’s chest, the exhaustion of such an eventful day caught up with you and it wasn’t long until you had fallen fast asleep. 

**End of Chapter Outfit:**

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 2 sights: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/627736298810195968/day-2-itinerary-top-left-glymur-falls-top


	11. Chapter 11

If you’d thought day two of your trip had involved a lot of driving, you were in for a rude awakening moving forward.

The morning of your third day in Iceland, you and Cale had slept in until around 8 am before getting up, heading down to breakfast, packing up and then checking out of the hotel. Before leaving Reykjavik, you stopped at a market to stock up on some drinks and snacks, then a gas station for a refill before finally hitting the road heading south.

After about an hour and 40 minute drive, you reached your first stop: Seljalandsfoss Waterfall. This waterfall was the perfect photo op because you could actually walk behind the falls. Taking some sillier but also sweet pictures, you continued on to another waterfall about a half hour away. From there, you stopped for lunch before Cale drove on to Dyrhólaey Nature Reserve.

The nature reserve was home to sea stacks and arches and the view from the upper trail was breathtaking. It had only been three days but already you were certain that Iceland was one of the most beautiful countries in the world. After taking in the views from above, you headed to the lower trail and onto Reynisfjara beach.

There, black sand stretched in front of you as far as you could see. It was so different than any other beach you’d ever been on but it was honestly really, really cool. As cool as the sand was, the rock formations lining the beach were even cooler. After walking tucked into Cale’s side for a little bit you looked up at the cliffs to your left and immediately started freaking out. Jumping up and down, trying not to squeal, you tugged on Cale’s sleeve as if your previous actions hadn’t already gained his attention.

“What are you freaking out about?” Cale asked, mystified expression on his face.

“Puffins!” You squealed quietly, pure glee on your face. “They’re so cute!” The last thing you wanted to do was disturb the birds, but you were so excited to see them it was impossible to keep completely silent. Of course, you kept your distance, simply admiring them from afar.

Cale didn’t seem to know what to do with your reaction but he let you have your moment watching the birds, his lips pressed against the top of your head. As you headed back down the beach Cale rubbed his thumb against your side.

“I take you to see beautiful geological formations but it’s the birds you’re excited about.” He mused, shaking his head.

“Leave me alone.” You pouted. “You don’t just see puffins anywhere you know.” Lifting your chin, Cale kissed you softly.

“As long as you’re having fun and are excited about something I’m happy.” He insisted, his arm pulling you closer into his side.

It wasn’t a far drive to the village of Vik which Cale informed you was where you were staying for the night. Unlike yesterday where you had been going non-stop, not returning to your hotel until after 11pm, today you were already here and it was only late afternoon.

After checking into your hotel, you dropped off your bags and used the bathroom before heading into the village itself to park and walk around. Stopping into the tourist shop, you browsed around looking specifically at all of the locally made products. Eventually, you spotted a set of glass coasters made from the black sand of the beaches you’d just been on. Across the tops, various local scenes were painted. They were simple but beautiful and your fingers lingered across the tops of them.

“Those are nice.” Cale said, appearing over your shoulder suddenly.

“Yeah they are.” You agreed. Picking up two sets, Cale handed you one.

“We should get them. One for the house, one for my apartment.” Cale declared. “That way we both have something to remind us of this trip.”

“That’s really soft Cale.” You murmured.

“Don’t care.” He replied. Though you continued to look around, there wasn’t anything else that spoke to you as much as the set of coasters did and eventually you headed to the register to purchase them.

Walking around the village you took in how cute and quaint it was. Soon after your stomachs started complaining, you stumbled into a small restaurant. There you and Cale split a pizza with pesto for sauce, mozzarella cheese, tomatoes, parma ham, topped with a balsamic glaze and parmesan cheese. It was delicious and you left feeling completely stuffed.

You’d called it an early night back at the hotel, settling for a movie on Netflix as you curled up together in bed. A relaxing evening was exactly what you needed to recharge and be ready to continue on your journey.

++

Day four of your trip started by filling up the gas tank and then embarking on an hour long drive to Fjaðrárgljúfur canyon.

Just before you reached the canyon, you encountered a small turn off which led you to a viewpoint. Climbing out of the car you walked up the pathway until you reached a platform. As far as the eye could see were moss covered rocks and it truly felt like you had stepped onto another planet.

“Are you sure we’re still on planet earth?” You whispered to Cale. Your boyfriend chuckled quietly in response, his hand resting on your hip. It seemed like the more time you spent alone together, not worried about who you saw or who saw you, the more reliant on physical touches each of you became. You’d never felt so comfortable just being with someone and thinking back on the times you’d seen Cale with Sara, you had a feeling the same could be said for him.

With more pictures clogging up your phones, you continued on to the Canyon itself. It was only a two-minute walk to the start of the canyon from the car and the moment you reached it your jaw dropped.

“Cale…” You whispered. You didn’t even have words to describe how beautiful this place was.

“Woah…sweetheart.” Cale’s thumbs brushed against your cheeks as he spoke and it wasn’t until he pulled you into his chest that you realized you were crying. “Shhh..give your brain a minute to process.” Cale assured you. His patience with you seemed neverending as his hands stroked your back until you finally calmed down.

“Sorry…” You mumbled, wiping frantically at your eyes when you finally pulled away.

“Nothing to be sorry about.” Cale insisted. “You’re allowed to be emotionally effected by things. It’s normal. Especially when it’s something as amazing as this.” Cale’s lips pressed gently to your forehead and he dropped his hand from your back to lace your fingers together. “You good to go walk?” He questioned.

It took about 45 minutes to walk all the way up to the top of the canyon and back and you stopped for pictures at various points along the way. You still couldn’t put into words the way this place made you feel; it was all so overwhelming in the best way. As you stood off to the side of the first viewpoint, away from the majority of other tourists, you tugged Cale’s hand until he was close enough you could wrap your arms around his neck.

“Thank you.” You murmured, kissing him lightly. “You always know exactly what I need, you’re always putting me first and taking care of me. It doesn’t go unnoticed, and you don’t know how much I appreciate it. You mean the world to me Cale…I don’t know if I’m quite as good at showing it as you are, but I hope you know that.”

“I do…know that…” Cale responded, kissing you again gently before pulling away, a fondness in his eyes that nearly sent you reeling. Dragging your fingers along his lower back you made up your mind to show him just how important he was to you once you were actually alone.

Back in the car, you munched on some of the snacks you’d brought in lieu of trying to find somewhere to stop for lunch. It took almost two hours to get to your next stop, the Jökulsárlón Iceberg Lagoon.

There, the two of you hopped on a boat tour where you got to taste a piece of 1,000 year old ice as you toured the lagoon. It was incredible to see first hand just how much ice was breaking off of the glacier and it made you more cognizant of the consequences of global climate change.

Right across the highway from the lagoon was Breiðamerkursandur or the diamond beach where fragments of ice wash up after floating from the lagoon out into the ocean. You made Cale climb onto an iceberg so you could take a picture of him and you got some great shots of all of the ice scattered along the shore. Despite the fact that it wasn’t all that cold outside, having been surrounded by ice for the past hour or two left you feeling chilly even if you had dressed in layers.

As you climbed in the car, Cale turned the heat on and you squeezed his knee in thanks. It was just a short drive to your hotel for the night and once you’d checked in, you shed a few layers before heading to the bar for a drink before dinner.

You’d retreated to your room around 6:30pm and Cale hopped in the shower first to clean up. While you waited for him to finish, you dug in your bag trying to decide what to grab for after your own shower. Thinking back to how you had promised yourself you were going to show Cale just how important he was, you unzipped a small compartment where you’d hidden the lingerie you’d bought.

Buying lingerie had been a spur of the moment decision possibly fueled by a few glasses of wine, and the thought of actually wearing it made you nervous. Your sex life with Cale had been fairly tame so far, nothing too out of the box. It had also been completely spontaneous on every occasion. You honestly had no idea how he would react to lingerie and though both sets were fairly tame in comparison to some sets you’d seen online, this was still something new and therefore nerve wracking.

Hearing the shower turn off, you jumped, your heart racing as you grabbed the more modest of the two sets. If you were going to do this, you were going to ease into it. Collecting your cosmetic bag, you hid the lingerie close to your chest.

Slipping into the bathroom as soon as Cale exited, you stripped out of your clothes and stepped into the shower trying not to overthink this. Focusing on shaving your legs and cleaning up served as a bit of a distraction but as you toweled off, your eyes landed back on the lingerie you’d placed on the counter.

You were certain you’d talk yourself out of this if you had to stare at yourself wearing the lingerie in the mirror for too long, so you started with your makeup, doing just a little bit more than you had been lately in order to make yourself feel confident and sexy. Blow drying your hair, you brushed it out before finally reaching for the lace and silk fabric.

Burgundy colored silk sat low on your hips, edged by black lace along both of your thighs. The same black lace covered your chest, ending at the bottom of your ribcage leaving your stomach exposed. It was…sensual but not over the top and when you slid the burgundy silk robe over it, you felt like you might actually be able to pull this off.

Reminding yourself that Cale had nearly lost his shit at the sight of you in a bikini the other night, you took a deep breath before opening the bathroom door and stepping out into the bedroom. Cale was sprawled out on the bed with just a pair of shorts slung low on his hips.

“What do you want to watch tonight?” Cale’s question was asked before he ever looked up at you, but when he did he blinked slowly. “That’s uh…that’s not your usual pajama set…” He murmured.

Blood pounding through your veins, you moved across the room to climb onto the bed beside him. Grabbing the remote from his hand, you turned the tv off before setting the remote aside.

“I was thinking about a different form of entertainment tonight…” You stated, your own voice sounding foreign in your ears. Sliding over Cale’s lap until you were straddling him, your hands ran down along his arms as his eyes did a slow once over of your body. “I think it’s time I take care of you for once.” You husked, raising an eyebrow. Cale hadn’t even seen what was under the robe yet and already he was slack jawed. The power you held over him in that moment sent a rush of adrenaline through you and you slid down the bed, tugging his shorts and boxers down with you.

“You good handsome?” You teased, lightly stroking your fingers over the length of his rapidly hardening dick. Cale couldn’t seem to speak, but he nodded his head and for now that was enough consent. Flicking your tongue along the slit of his cock, you stroked the length of him in your hand until a soft grunt fell from his lips. Only then did you hollow your cheeks, sinking down around him, taking as much of his length as you could down your throat. Bobbing slowly, you felt him twitch and when you pulled back to breathe you ran your tongue along the veins on the underside of his cock.

Following your instincts, plus Cale’s body language and verbal clues, you settled into a rhythm blowing your boyfriend for the first time. You’d seen and felt Cale orgasm enough to know when he was getting close as his body strained beneath you.

“Fuck. Babe. Stop.” Cale gasped, but peeking up at him you knew he didn’t actually want you to stop.

“We’ve got all night handsome…plenty of time for you to recover after coming down my throat.” You murmured before flicking your tongue through his slit again collecting all of his precum. Returning to your efforts, you cupped his balls as you sunk down his length. After just a minute, Cale came with a moan as he spilled down your throat and after swallowing you pulled off of him, sliding your tongue along his skin to clean him up.  
Cale’s cheeks were flushed as he tried to catch his breath and you slid up his body, settling yourself back over his lap.

“Who are you and what have you done with my girlfriend?” Cale gasped, his head falling forward to land against your shoulder. Kissing his head, you ran your fingers through his hair waiting for him to become more coherent.

“Just trying to take care of my man.” You hummed. “But if you’re complaining…you don’t have to see what’s under the robe.” As you spoke, you drew his hands up to the tie at your waist, leaving it for him to undo.

The speed at which Cale undid the bow told you that he wasn’t complaining at all and you let him push the robe from your shoulders, his eyes landing on you once more. His cheeks flushed further to match the color of your shorts and his eyes were wider than you’d ever seen them. You let him stare, watching as his tongue ran over his lips leaving them wet and shiny in the dim lighting of the hotel room.

“Fuck…” Cale breathed harshly, drawing out the word. “I must be dreaming right now.” He added. “You’re a fucking dream sweetheart.” Cale’s eyes ran slowly up and down your body like he wanted to memorize every inch. “You bought this for me?”

“I take it you like it?” You assumed, letting out a soft sigh in relief at his reaction.

“What do you think?” Cale grunted, pulling your hips to roll down against his cock which was already hard again.

Laughter bubbled from your chest in reaction and you cupped his cheek as you leaned in to kiss him deeply.

“Good to know lingerie is a hit with you.” You admitted. Cale’s eyes flashed with concern for just a moment before his hand fell to your hips, his thumbs brushing against your bare stomach.

“I don’t know whether I want you to keep this on or take it off.” He declared. Clearly he knew better than he thought he did, because as he spoke his hands slid up your sides, gently gripping the fabric and drawing it up and over your head. Half nude on top of him, Cale’s hands cupped your breasts as he pulled you into a desperate kiss.

“Can’t believe you’re mine…” He mumbled, pulling back. There was something about seeing him like this, flushed red, swollen lips, blissed out from one orgasm already that lit every primal need inside of you. As much as you were his, he was yours and god did you need him inside you.

“Please Cale…” You whimpered, rolling your hips against his.

“Shh…” He soothed, hands gliding across your ass. Sensing that he was going to try and flip you, you kept your weight centered firmly above him.

“I wanna be on top.” You pleaded. “Just need out of these shorts…”

Cale wasn’t responding quickly enough, so you pushed the fabric of your shorts off of your own hips, shifting as little as possible while attempting to kick them off and onto the floor.

“Let me…” You cut off Cale’s statement by raising your hips and lowering yourself onto his dick, a gasp spilling from your throat as you felt him slipping deep inside you.

“Yes…” You hissed, the stretch of your body around him filling you with a warmth and ache that you had missed so much. As you started shallowly leveraging yourself up before dropping back down your eyes met Cale’s deep azure orbs, the look in them heightening your arousal.

“So wet.” Cale eventually groaned. “My girl doesn’t even need foreplay after blowing me to be this soaking wet. Fuck.”

Though one of Cale’s hands fell to your hips, you were the one putting in all of the effort to fuck yourself on his cock.

“You’re so needy…fucking yourself…just using my body for your pleasure. So much for wanting to take care of me tonight.” Sinking down on him again, you purposely tightened your vaginal walls against him, drawing another moan from his chest.

“Hmm…I think me doing all the work…letting you cum inside me while you just lay there is taking pretty good care of you…” You corrected. Your thighs were starting to burn from bouncing on top of him but your orgasm was within arm’s reach and there was no way you were stopping before ensuring you both got to climax.

“My girl is close.” Cale groaned. “Cum for me sweetheart…let me feel that tight heat clamp down on me.”

Cale’s words pushed you over the edge and you sunk down on him in exhaustion as your body shook with your orgasm. Spurts of Cale’s semen filled you from deep inside and you whimpered at the feeling, warm from head to toe. As you collapsed against him, still connected intimately, Cale’s fingers played with the ends of your hair.

“I can’t get enough of you.” Cale whispered a few minutes later, his cock starting to harden inside of you again.

“Again?” You inquired, a little bit in disbelief that his rebound time was this fast.

“Only if you want to.” He assured you. “But I’ll take over, you can relax and enjoy this time.” This time when Cale attempted to roll the two of you over, you went willingly, staring up at him. Before moving, Cale settled your legs up over his shoulders and when he thrust inside of you, you cried out softly at the feeling of him brushing against your g-spot.

“I got you sweetheart…just tell me what you need.” Cale sighed, pleasure lacing his tone.

The sound of your skin smacking together and the squelch of your mixed bodily fluids rang in your ears.

“Talk to me…” You pleaded. “Like before.” You weren’t afraid to admit that hearing Cale dirty talk had pushed you so much closer to orgasm than you would have been otherwise.

“Yeah?” Cale breathed, his cheeks turning bright red again as you nodded. “You feel so good like this sweetheart. You’re even wetter than before. So tight too.” Every movement he made brushed against your g-spot and you couldn’t help the litany of noises that fell from your lips at the feeling.

“You like it when I fuck you like this huh?” He continued. “Your pussy stretches around me so nicely, just welcoming me inside. Do you like being fucked nice and deep like this? Feeling each ridge of me against your walls…feeling me spill deep inside you?” Crying out again, your head tossed back and forth against the pillow, your orgasm creeping up on you quickly.

“You do like feeling me spill inside of you don’t you? That’s why you wanted to stop using condoms. You like being skin to skin with me, feeling me raw you bare. You like being filled with my warm sticky cum, the way it drips out of you if I let it…”

Your vision went black for a moment as your orgasm crashed down on you hard. The muscles in your thighs spasmed painfully, but you barely noticed through the waves of pleasure that rippled through you, leaving you panting. As your body clenched around him again, you felt Cale spill inside of you for the second time tonight.

Carefully he pulled out of you before kissing your lips lightly.

“Be right back.” He declared, disappearing into the bathroom. He returned with a washcloth and after wiping down your thighs, he offered you a hand so that you could go to the bathroom yourself. When you returned to the bedroom, Cale handed you a t-shirt to wear before guiding you under the covers.

“So dirty talk huh…?” He chirped, his nose brushing against the top of your head.

“Shut up and turn the tv on Cale.” You replied, feeling heat flood your cheeks. Chuckling, Cale complied, but as he handed you the remote to pick a show he couldn’t help but get in the last word.

“It’s hot. I enjoyed it.” Shaking your head, you snuggled against him just basking in what was left of the afterglow.

“And for the record…you can always surprise me with lingerie. I’m definitely into that as well.”

**Lingerie:**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 3 tourist sights: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/628202778200866816/day-3-seljalandsfoss-waterfall-skogafoss
> 
> Day 4 tourist sights: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/628202780932390912/day-4-moss-covered-fields-fja%C3%B0r%C3%A1rglj%C3%BAfur-canyon


	12. Chapter 12

Waking up the morning of your fifth day in Iceland, you quickly became aware of a few things. First, Cale’s arm was wrapped tightly around your body, holding you close. Second, Cale’s soft snores echoed through the room signaling just how heavily he was still sleeping. Third, you really needed to use the bathroom. 

It was only as you moved to slide out of your boyfriend’s grasp that you became cognizant of just how sore you were from last night. It was a good soreness, the best really, and you couldn’t help but smile back at Cale’s sleeping form. You really did love him and the way you were able to connect through physical intimacy only heightened all of those feelings. Last night had been so much better than you could have imagined. 

Though you’d just showered, that was before multiple rounds of sex, so after using the bathroom, you quickly stepped under the showerhead to rinse off before starting today’s journey. 

Cale was awake when you returned to get dressed, his hair sticking up in every direction as he passed by you to use the bathroom himself. Spotting his post-it with today’s itinerary, you realized today was going to be pretty much spent in the car with only a couple stops. After throwing on a pair of comfy sweats and the t-shirt of Cale’s that had been tossed in the wash and never returned after your first time together, you finished packing up your bag so that you were ready to head to breakfast before checking out and hitting the road. 

It wasn’t until you headed to the car after stuffing your stomach that you paused, looking over at Cale. You’d been tired when you woke up, but breakfast had quickly jump-started your energy levels. Cale, on the other hand, had had breakfast and coffee and still looked like he was half asleep. 

As he opened the passenger door for you as he always did, you made a quick decision. 

“Give me the keys Cale. I’m driving.” You insisted. Cale’s mouth opened to speak but you just pressed up to kiss his mouth gently while snatching the keys from his fingers. Quickly moving around to the driver’s side of the SUV, you climbed in, immediately starting to fix the seat and mirrors. By the time you had adjusted everything, Cale had finally climbed into the passenger seat, his tired eyes watching you. 

You plugged the first address into his phone’s gps as you waited to see if he was going to fight you or actually let you drive. As you pulled out of the parking lot, it was clear that he was choosing the latter and by the time you actually reached the main highway he was fast asleep against the window of the car. 

Turning on some music, the volume low, you sang along quietly as you rode down the highway. The vistas of Iceland were stunning and you pulled over a few times to take pictures. Cale didn’t stir even when the car stopped and after snapping the pictures of the view that had made you stop in the first place, you snapped a couple of pictures of Cale sleeping. He was so attractive that your heart skipped a beat, his head laying on a sweatshirt, expression peaceful. 

With nothing but the music, Iceland’s views, and Cale’s steady breathing to keep you company, you drove for about three and a half hours before the sound of Cale shifting signaled he was slowly waking up. He didn’t speak right away, but you could feel his eyes on you, this time focused and intense. 

“Pull over…” Cale’s gruff morning voice suddenly demanded. 

“We’re almost to the first stop…we can switch back then…” You replied, assuming that was what he wanted. 

“Y/N…” Cale spoke and this time the change in tone made you shiver. His hand slid over to rest high on your thigh and just a peek over at him revealed those azure orbs that were only present when Cale was turned on. 

“Cale…seriously?” You inquired, though you were already searching for a semi-private stretch of road to pull off onto as your body’s instincts took over. 

The moment you put the car into park, Cale was leaning over to crash his lips onto yours. It was a level of need you hadn’t seen from him before and when he moved to climb into the backseat, you followed without hesitation. 

Immediately his hands grabbed your hips, pulling you to straddle one of his thighs as you pulled the door closed behind you. 

“This is mine.” He growled against your ear as his fingers gripped the hem of your t-shirt. 

“Problem?” You smirked, tugging your bottom lip between your teeth. Cale’s hands slid under the fabric, cupping your breasts through the material of your bra as he angled his thigh up against your core. 

“You know exactly why it’s a problem sweetheart.” He whispered, his voice low. 

“Well what are you going to do about it?” You whispered back. Somehow, despite the cramped space, Cale flipped you over, settling you onto his lap so that his chest was pressed against your back. Letting out a yelp at the sudden movement, you whined as Cale’s long fingers slid into your sweats, rubbing your clit firmly. 

“If you’re wearing my shirt…you’re mine.” Cale breathed into your ear, his fingers sliding through your core to press deep inside you. 

“You know I’m yours. Always.” You gasped, your body stretching around his fingers as he slowly fucked you open. 

You were a squirming mess on his lap by the time Cale finally pulled his fingers out of you, sucking them clean before shoving at your sweats. Pushing his joggers off of his own hips, Cale settled you over him before thrusting inside you in one smooth motion. The stretch around him made you whimper and immediately Cale froze, his fingers cupping your jaw and forcing you to turn your head to look at him. 

“Am I hurting you?” He breathed, nothing but concern on his face. 

“I’m just sore Cale…it’s okay.” You assured him. 

“Hurting you is never okay.” Cale insisted. “Do you want me to stop?” Shaking your head immediately, you tried to kiss him. “No…sweetheart talk to me…” Cale pressed. “What do you need? Slow? Fast? Shallow? Deep? Tell me.” 

“Slow…” You murmured, knowing you couldn’t handle fast. Everything else you weren’t sure about and Cale seemed to register that, starting with slow and shallow thrusts to see if he could build up to more. 

Ultimately, it seemed like a combination of shallow thrusts and just grinding together was exactly what you needed and after a few minutes you came all over Cale’s lap with a shout. 

“That’s my girl.” Cale moaned out softly, shifting to slide out of you without cumming himself. 

“Cale…” You breathed, tipping your head back to look at him. “I can take a little more. Want you to cum.” 

“You sure?” Cale asked, kissing along your shoulder over his shirt. Flexing your internal walls, you nodded. 

“Cum for me Cale.” You insisted, flexing your walls to clamp down on him again. “I love being with you like this.” You whispered. “The way you fill me. The way you take care of me not just physically, but in every way. I love feeling you spill inside me, knowing that I’m yours. Knowing that every time you cum inside me you’re claiming me.” 

After a few more shallow thrusts, Cale grunted your name, his orgasm crashing through his body. Simply resting on top of him as he came down from his high, you carded your fingers through his hair. 

“You good now?” You asked. “Did seeing me in your shirt really set all of that off?” Your words were teasing and Cale nipped lightly at your shoulder as his fingers trailed across your stomach. 

“This is the shirt…” He trailed off. 

“I know.” You smirked. “It’s the first piece of your clothing that got left behind. And if it causes this kind of reaction…I think I’m officially stealing it.” 

“It’s yours.” Cale murmured, lifting your hips so that he could slide out of you, a hiss slipping from your lips at the loss. Grabbing some napkins from the front seat, Cale did his best to clean you up before helping you fix your clothing. Once you were both somewhat presentable, you climbed out of the backseat. 

Figuring Cale would take over behind the wheel again, you moved to round the car, only to be caught by Cale’s fingers on your wrist. 

“Thank you.” He said. “Thank you for driving, I really needed the extra sleep.” 

“I don’t mind Cale.” You assured him. “Plus you’re pretty cute when you’re sleeping.” You declared winking. 

“Like I’m not cute all the time?” Cale asked, mocking offense to your words. 

“Cute no…” You tossed out, a squeal of laughter spilling from your mouth as Cale’s fingers started to tickle you. “Attractive, sexy, gorgeous…yes.” You amended, kissing him one more time. “Now let’s go…you’ve put us behind schedule.” You joked. 

“We don’t have a schedule.” He called, laughing while climbing back into the driver’s seat as you rounded the car. 

It only took another 45 minutes or so before Cale was pulling into a parking lot. You could see a lot of water but you weren’t quite sure why this was even a destination. As you climbed out of the car, you looked questioningly over at your boyfriend. 

“So uh…this wasn’t on my original list but I added it after the other day.” Cale explained, taking your hand to guide you down the hill and over a rocky harbor. As you climbed a set of wooden steps on the other side, your eyes went wide. Puffins…there were puffins everywhere. Thousands of them. 

“Cale…you didn’t…” You mumbled, feeling your eyes start watering. 

“Of course I did.” Cale mused. “If a little detour can make you this happy then it’s worth it.” 

Cale’s arms wrapped around you from behind as you stood watching all of the puffins. The fact that he had changed up the plans to include this just for you had your heart racing and your hands shaking. 

“Cale I…” you were a split second away from admitting that you love him when the logical side of your brain took hold. “…thank you.” You finished instead, kissing his cheek. 

After grabbing lunch from the small cafe by the harbor, you climbed back in the car to drive another 2 hours to your next destination. The entire drive you couldn’t stop thinking about your almost slip. Did he feel the same? Would he have said it back? No…it was definitely better that you caught yourself because you didn’t want to put that kind of pressure on him only a month after you’d decided to start dating. You wanted him to say ‘I love you’ because he meant it, not because he felt like he had to. 

Realizing the car had stopped, you looked around to find Cale climbing out. 

“You coming?” He questioned, brows furrowed. Swallowing hard you nodded and climbed out of the car, following Cale as he led you down a path. It was a decent walk before you reached the Studlagil canyon where the basalt stacks were a striking sight. Driving around Iceland really did feel like you had visited a dozen different planets in only a few days. Posing for some pictures you looked around for just a few minutes before heading back to the car. 

Leaning your head against the window, you didn’t even realize as your eyes drifted closed. 

From the driver’s seat, Cale glanced over at you. He wasn’t stupid, he sensed the shift in your behavior since your slip in words. And while he could pretend he didn’t, he was fairly certain he knew what you were going to say before you’d caught yourself. He couldn’t help but wonder why you had caught yourself. Were the words that you’d almost shared not true? Were they true but you just weren’t ready to share them? If it was the latter…were you not ready to share them because once again you were worried about moving things faster than he was ready for? 

That seemed like the mostly likely option, or maybe that was just somewhat wishful thinking on his part. To be honest, he hadn’t really thought about it all. He cared about you, was more comfortable with you than with anyone else, and maybe those nagging emotions he’d been feeling lately could be classified as love if he forced himself to classify them as anything. But until now, he hadn’t felt the need to define exactly what he was feeling. Now, he was certain he wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about it. 

You’d almost said ‘I love you’ and that was big. That was important. That was potentially life-changing. And maybe he’d expected it to hit him out of the blue…but maybe that wasn’t how this worked. Maybe it was all of the little things…the way you teased him because you knew him so well, the way your giggle echoed in his ears, the way you’d always supported him and wanted what was best for him no matter what it cost you. Maybe it was the smell of your perfume, the way your eyes lit up when you were happy and how you cried so openly in front of him. Maybe it was how your hand fit in his, how your body fit against him, how your lives intertwined. 

Maybe the realization that he loves you wasn’t supposed to happen suddenly, maybe it was something that pervaded every moment of every day; maybe it was something that just was, like how the sky is blue and a puck is made from rubber. 

Maybe it was something he’d known all along. But whether that was the case or not, he was certain of it now as he watched you sleep in the passenger seat. He was in love with his best friend. He was in love with you. 

You stirred as you felt Cale’s arms lift you from the car. With your head tucked into his neck you groaned softly, but Cale’s whispered words that he had you and to rest lulled you right back to sleep and it wasn’t long before you were tucked back against his body as he joined you in bed, his fingers trailing up and down your spine. 

“I love you Y/N.” Cale’s words settled any worries in your mind and though you were certain they were just a dream, you hoped for the day they would actually be real. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Day 5 tourist stop: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/628378946816376832/day-5-studlagil-canyon


	13. Chapter 13

When you woke up with a headache the morning of Monday, June 22nd, it took you a minute to realize why your head was pounding. Oh yeah…you’d almost slipped and told Cale that you love him…

Groaning, you tugged your pillow over your head, not ready to face the daylight. Sadly though, as much as your head hurt, your stomach was protesting the lack of being fed the night before. 

“Morning beautiful.” Cale whispered from a chair in the corner where he was looking through maps and his phone. 

“Try that again when my head doesn’t feel like it’s hosting a drum competition.” You mumbled digging through your bag for some pain relievers. 

“Sounds like we should get you some breakfast…” Cale murmured softly. 

“Yes please.” You requested, burying your head against Cale’s chest as he moved to hug you. “Probably shouldn’t have passed out before dinner…” You sighed, popping two pills before swallowing them with a bottle of water Cale handed you. 

Thankfully, by the time you’d eaten a full breakfast, your headache had subsided a good deal, enough that you felt like you could follow through with Cale’s plans for the day even if he assured you that you didn’t have to. 

A bumpy hour long drive (which would not have been possible without 4-wheel drive) later you reached Dettifoss Waterfall. You were absolutely astounded by the number of waterfalls on this island because it seemed like everywhere you went there was another one. This one boasted the reputation of being the most powerful waterfall in Europe and as you watched an immense volume of water go crashing over its edge you understood why. 

Taking more touristy pictures for your parents, you, for what felt like the thousandth time, climbed back into the car. Another hour and a half drive took you to the coastal village of Husavik. 

“I think you’ll enjoy this next activity.” Cale declared as you climbed out of the car. 

“Yeah?” You inquired, cocking your head. “What are we doing?” 

“Whale watching?” Cale replied, a bright grin on his face. 

“Are you serious?” You exclaimed. 

“Well hopefully? I mean the whales will have to cooperate.” Cale shrugged. “But it’s supposed to be a pretty cool experience.” 

“Let’s go!” Your excitement only continued to grow as you checked in with the tour company, dressed yourself in the overalls they provided, and made your way onto the boat. 

As you waited for the tour to start, Cale handed you a set of pills and a bottle of water. 

“I forgot these when we went to the lagoon but I think you might need them today. With your headache this morning, seasickness might hit a little easier.” Cale explained. 

Taking the pills, you swallowed them before kissing Cale lightly. Even you forgot about your proclivity for seasickness most of the time, so the fact that Cale remembered and had brought motion sickness pills kind of blew you away. 

Your families had been on a cruise together when you were 15 and Cale was 11. You’d always been fine out on the lake but the moment you were on a boat in the open ocean for the first time you became sick as a dog. You spent more than half the cruise in bed, and had only gotten through the other half by popping motion sickness pills as frequently as you were allowed. Cale had stuck by your side, watching movies while you slept against his shoulder and refusing to go do anything if you weren’t feeling up to it. It had been one of the last times you’d spent such an extended amount of time together until recently, but it had also been so long ago that you were shocked Cale remembered. 

“Thank you.” You breathed, squeezing his knee as the tour guide started to give a quick safety briefing before the boat headed out into the bay. For about an hour you continued out before finally the boat came to a stop for at least the moment. It took some patience but eventually your tour guide pointed your attention to some moving figures out to the left side of the boat. 

“Dolphins Cale…those are dolphins!” You blurted out. They were absolutely beautiful and you certainly hadn’t expected to see them. They didn’t stay in the vicinity of the boat long but shortly after they left, off to the right the flick of a whale’s tail sent water flying. The boat moved a little closer and you were able to see the whale surface again, water pushed out of the blowhole as it took in air. 

Two more whales made an appearance while you were out in the bay, one fully breaching the water before diving back under. It was a surreal experience…one you were certain you would never forget. You weren’t sure if you or Cale were able to get any decent photos but honestly that didn’t matter much to you because you just wanted to enjoy the moment you were in. 

By the time you started heading back to shore, your seasickness had started to catch up with you. Land was a welcome sight at that point and as Cale helped you off the boat, he helped you steady yourself before assisting you in getting out of your overalls. 

“Let’s get some more food in you sweetheart.” Cale led you over to a restaurant for lunch and then the two of you just walked around the village until most of the unpleasantness you were feeling had passed. 

“Was that worth the pain?” Cale questioned as he opened the car door for you. 

“100%.” You replied, kissing him gently. “That was something I think I’ll remember forever so thank you.” 

“Anything for you.” Cale stated offhandedly, but the look in his eyes suggested he really meant it. “So the only other thing on the itinerary is another waterfall…do you want to go, or just head back to the hotel?” 

“Would you mind if we just go back to the hotel?” You murmured. 

“Not at all.” Cale assured you. Like those days on the cruise where seasickness got the best of you, you spent your evening curled into Cale’s side just watching tv. You’d come so far from the kids you were back then and you knew if you’d told your 15 year old self that someday you’d be in love with that gangly boy who had rubbed your back while you cried because you were missing everything, she certainly wouldn’t have believed you. Though Cale was a man who had grown into his body and not a gangly kid anymore, he was still the kind, compassionate, beautiful soul that he was a decade ago and the way he cares for you has only grown. 

____

It was hard to believe that you had been in Iceland for an entire week. It was flying by so fast and the closer you got to the end of your vacation, the less you wanted to leave. This time alone with Cale was so wonderful and the thought of going home to where you didn’t wake up beside him everyday made your stomach twist uncomfortably. 

“I can hear the gears in your head turning.” Cale declared as his lips pressed against the back of your neck and his arms pulled you closer to his body in bed. “Everything okay?” 

“Just thinking about how I don’t want this to end…” You admitted, snuggling closer. 

“Me either.” Cale agreed. 

Neither of you seemed to be in a rush to climb out of bed. In fact, you just laid there enjoying being in Cale’s arms for nearly half an hour before your body protested the stillness and forced you to get up and stretch. Even when you did get up, Cale was quick to follow and as you got ready for the day he was by your side, the two of you moving around each other with a practiced ease. 

Though you didn’t really have a strict agenda, there had been so much to see and do or so much driving ahead of you that it felt like you had to keep moving or you’d fall behind. Today though felt nothing like that. You took your time at breakfast before heading just a few minutes down the road to the Dimmuborgir lava fields. 

Walking around the volcanic structures, you held Cale’s free hand as he took pictures with his phone in the other. 

From there it was another quick drive to Hverir, a fumarole field with boiling mud pits. The smell of sulfur was expected this time and though you didn’t love it, it didn’t bother you as much as it had at Geysir. You’d never known that so many different environments could exist so close together until this trip and it was mind-boggling to experience all of them in such short succession. 

Having checked off the majority of Cale’s list for the day by lunch time, you headed back to the hotel to eat and grab swimsuits. From there you headed over to the Myvatn Nature Baths, another hot spring. 

Honestly, you’d enjoyed the Blue Lagoon but you and Cale had both been so tired from everything else that you were really looking forward to just spending as long as you liked relaxing this time. 

Checking in, you parted to change again and after quickly showering you pulled on your suit, wondering if Cale would flip over this one like he had the last. His eyes went wide, but he wasn’t quite as speechless as before as he pulled you close. 

“Sunflowers for my sunshine…I see what you did there.” He grinned. Though it was the middle of the day, the nature baths were significantly quieter and less crowded than the Blue Lagoon had been and it made you feel more comfortable swimming close to Cale, perching yourself right beside him as he found a spot to lounge. 

After a while, you settled into a small pool with alcoholic beverages, leaning against Cale’s side. 

“This is perfect.” You murmured. As much as you loved exploring, you were basking in just being, not having to do anything or go anywhere. Cale’s fingers brushed lightly against your hip and you draped one leg over his knee as you turned to kiss him gently. “Maybe I should look into a hot tub for the backyard.” You mused. “Iceland has spoiled me and I’m not sure I’m going to want to swim in anything colder than this ever again.” 

“I mean…I’m not going to talk you out of that…” Cale chuckled. “It may not be the most practical decision, but we could certainly have some fun with it.” 

“Head out of the gutter Mr. Makar.” You giggled. “Do you think about anything but sex lately?” 

“Can’t help myself around you…” Cale shrugged, pressing a light kiss to your nose. “But that should be obvious considering I’ve had more sex with you in the month we’ve been together than in my entire 3 year long previous relationship.” 

“My gain…” You replied. You were never going to apologize for wanting to have sex with him. Nor were you going to apologize for the fact that the sex was really good and getting better every time. Being physical with him felt natural and you were glad to hear that he felt the same way. 

“This is something special huh?” You breathed, taking a sip from your wine glass as you looked out across the large pool to the skyline beyond. 

“This trip? Or us?” Cale clarified, finishing off his beer before setting the empty glass off to the side. 

“Both…but mainly us.” You whispered. 

“Yeah beautiful…this is something special.” Cale agreed. “A year ago, I never would have imagined how good things could be…being with my best friend. Now I can’t imagine life any other way.” 

As your eyes met, you couldn’t help but feel there was something left unsaid, but as he kissed you, you felt the weight of those unspoken words deep within you. 

“I can’t either.” You murmured as your lips pulled back from his. 

Breaking the intense moment, you moved to the larger pool, swimming around until you and Cale were both ready to leave. 

Today had been a wonderful day…you felt relaxed and closer to Cale in every way. Though you would leave the Northern coast of Iceland behind in the morning, in a way you were taking a piece of it with you in the form of memories that you hoped would last a lifetime. 

**Swimsuit:**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Days 6 and 7 tourist sights: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/628820891158085632/day-6-dettifoss-waterfall-and-whale-watching


	14. Chapter 14

You were up with the sun the morning of your 8th day in Iceland…well not technically because the summer sun in Iceland is up about 21 hours of the day…but if you were back home, it certainly would have been considered getting up with the sun. 

Downing a quick breakfast, you packed up the car and hit the road again. Today was another day filled with a lot of driving and you did your best to entertain Cale by singing along to music as he drove through vast stretches of farmland. You may not have had the best voice but no one could jump through the diverse playlist Cale had made like you could. 

Driving down the highway you could see Icelandic horses roaming through the fields and it made you even more excited for the horseback ride Cale had scheduled for this afternoon. First though, you had a quick stop at Hvítserkur to see the sea stack which was said to be a troll who was turned to stone while trying to destroy a Christian monastery. 

There, Cale mimicked the stance you imagined the troll would be standing in and you snapped pictures, trying not to shake the camera while you laughed your ass off. No one else could make you laugh quite the way Cale could and you shook your head at him as you headed back to the car. 

“What am I going to do with you?” You mused, climbing into the passenger seat. 

“I can think of a few things.” Cale joked. And while his words were teasing, his expression was more serious, leaving you feeling like you were definitely missing something. 

Three more hours down along the western coast of Iceland brought you to Grundarfjorour, a small village outside of which you were going to ride. Arriving at the farm you met up with your tour guide and then proceeded out to meet the horses. 

“It’s been so long since I’ve gone riding.” You murmured climbing onto a platform as you put on a helmet before settling your foot in the stirrup to mount yourself onto the horse’s back. Though it had been a long time, the feeling was familiar and you ran your hands along your horse’s neck as you waited for Cale and your guide to be ready to go. 

Cale seemed to struggle far more than you had despite his height advantage and you shook your head in exasperation. 

“C’mon Cale…act like you’ve done this before.” You chirped. He stuck his tongue out at you as he finally settled himself in the saddle and you laughed lightly. “You need some work if you’re ever going to be asked to ride in the parade at Stampede…” You continued, shooting him a wink before turning to your guide as she explained where you were headed. 

There was something even more beautiful about the highlands of Iceland while on horseback and you continued up through the mountains, past multiple waterfalls as you followed your guide on a two hour loop of the farm. You’d forgotten just how much you loved horseback riding. At the same time, you’d never had as much fun on a ride as you did with Cale beside you. 

At the end of your ride, your guide took a few pictures of the two of you before you climbed off of your horse. Treating the mare to some apple slices for a job well done, you thanked your guide once more before continuing on your way once again. 

“I think I kind of forgot about how much you love animals.” Cale mused as his hand settled over yours as he pulled out onto the main road. “From catching frogs to riding horses. There were very few things involving animals that you were ever afraid of.” 

“I still don’t like snakes.” You declared and your words drew a laugh from Cale’s throat. 

“I remember when you screamed bloody murder when we were playing outside and the tinest little garter snake slithered through the grass. I don’t think I’d ever heard such a shrill sound before.” 

“To be fair…that snake was like 2 centimeters from where my hand had just been.” You reminded him. 

“Sure…” Cale smirked, his thumb brushing over the back of your hand lightly. 

“Don’t be mean to me…” You chastised, a pout forming on your face. 

“Don’t pout when I can’t kiss you.” Cale grumbled. 

“You can kiss me later.” You assured him, turning your head to look out the window once more. After spending another two hours in the car, you finally pulled into your hotel for the evening, ready to stretch your legs. 

A dip in the hotel’s hot pools after dinner eased your aching muscles and provided Cale with the perfect opportunity to kiss you just like he had promised to. With only one more full day left in Iceland it felt like time had sped up and you felt the desperate need to catch and hold onto each and every moment before they just disappeared. 

___

Your last full day in Iceland started with a trip to see two more sets of waterfalls: Hraunfossar and Barnafoss. Really it was just sets of waterfalls upon waterfalls and you really couldn’t tell one from the other. Still, you were blown away by the absolute beauty of this country and tucked into Cale’s side you were so grateful he had brought you along on this trip. It had been exhausting at times, but it was an experience that you would never take for granted because it had brought the two of you so much closer together. 

Looking down at Cale’s checklist, there was only one more typed item on it. A few small sights were penciled in for tomorrow before your flight but those were just quick stops and not a full excursion. You weren’t sure what to expect from the Surtshellir lava tubes but the desolate landscape around the site suggested that this wasn’t the easiest activity in the world. Taking the headlamp that Cale had brought, you clipped it around your head before following after Cale down to the entrance of the tube. 

For only being a mile long, the lava tube was not an easy hike. Big boulders covered the floor creating an uneven walking surface. Going slowly, you took care to make sure that where you were stepping was stable and that you maintained your balance. And at first everything was fine. 

Then, after walking a good distance - about an hour in - Cale decided it was time to turn around and head back. With Cale in front of you kind of guiding your path, you continued back in the direction you’d come from for about forty minutes. As you moved to step over a somewhat large stone, your foot slipped and you stumbled, pain shooting up your ankle immediately. 

You’d managed not to fall somehow but when you tried to take another step you could barely put any weight on your ankle. 

“Cale…” You cried out, voice cracking. Immediately your boyfriend turned around at the sound of your voice and seeing you standing balanced on one foot, he darted back over the rocks until he reached your side. 

“What happened?” He questioned, his eyes filled with confusion and concern. 

“My foot caught wrong on the rock and I slipped and fuck Cale it hurts.” You were trying to stay calm, trying to bite back the pain, but as you grasped at Cale’s pullover to use him for balance, you felt tears prick at your eyes. 

“Shit.” Cale breathed, his arm wrapping around your waist in support. “Can you sit so I can see?” He requested, looking around for somewhere you could perch yourself. Nodding, you let him guide you down, his headlamp catching in your eyes causing you to squeeze them shut tightly. 

His touch was soft as he shifted your leg to get a better look at your ankle and you crinkled your nose at the pressure of his fingers along your muscles. 

“I know it hurts but can you flex your foot for me?” He inquired and the tears finally fell as you tried to cooperate with everything he was asking of you. 

“Shh..sweetheart you’re okay…y/n baby look at me…” Cale practically cooed, his thumb brushing over your cheek. “I know it hurts but I’m fairly confident it’s just a sprain.” Dropping the backpack he’d been carrying, Cale squatted in front of you, urging you to just breathe. 

“Let’s get you out of here so I can get a better look.” Cale directed, calm as ever. 

“I can’t put any weight on it…” You whispered, trying not to panic about being stuck in the middle of a lava tube in Iceland fairly far from any medical access or assistance period. 

“You don’t have to put any weight on it.” Cale assured you. “Take this.” He instructed, moving to drape the backpack over your shoulders before he kissed you once on the forehead. “Now let’s get you up on your good foot for just a minute.” By taking everything one direction at a time, Cale was working to keep you calm and focused. Balancing on one leg you waited for Cale to move to your side thinking he was just going to help you stumble along. Instead he moved in front of you, his back facing you. 

“Alright…up you go.” He expressed, his hands at his sides waiting for something. It took you a minute to figure out what he was getting at and once you did, your eyes went wide. 

“Cale…you cannot carry me out of here.” You mumbled in disbelief. 

“Yes I can.” Cale declared, his tone leaving you no real choice but to go along. You figured he’d quickly see how impractical it was but as you wrapped your arms around his neck and your legs around his waist he didn’t seem at all fazed by the additional weight or the lack of use of his hands as he reached behind to support you. 

It took twice as long as it should have to exit the cave, but somehow Cale managed to not only get you out, but all the way back up to the car. 

“I can’t believe you just did that.” You whispered, voice shaking as he sat you down in the trunk of the car. He was a sweaty mess but it didn’t seem to bother him at all as he dug through his suitcase. You thought he was looking for a fresh shirt at least because he’d soaked through both his t-shirt and pullover but instead he pulled out two long strips of athletic tape. 

He was ever so careful as he slipped both your shoe and sock off of your foot, his eyes raking over the injured site. 

“It’s a little swollen but doesn’t look too bad.” He observed. “Is it as tender as before?” You winced as he pressed against the muscles of your ankle but the pain wasn’t quite as intense. 

“Not quite as bad.” You informed him. 

“Alright. Good.” Cale nodded, his tongue between his lips in focus. “I’m gonna tape it up and then we’ll go back to the hotel so you can elevate and ice it. Give it a few hours and see how it goes?” 

“Okay.” You agreed. You trusted Cale and since he didn’t seem overly concerned, you were going to do what he suggested and see where that got you. As Cale taped your ankle, doing his best not to cause you pain, you dug through your bag for the bottle of pain relievers before reaching for the water bottle in the backpack you’d just shed. 

“That should do it.” Cale murmured just as you swallowed the pills. Looking down, black k-tape stretched in multiple ways around your foot and ankle. Shifting forward, your bad ankle just hanging loosely out of the car, you ran your fingers along Cale’s stomach as you leaned up to kiss him. 

“You’re my hero, you know that?” You sighed. “Thank you.” Your stomach was twisting with an overflow of emotions and you took a deep breath trying to calm them. “That was like above and beyond boyfriend duties there.” You whispered, trying to lighten the mood. 

“Scared me.” Cale mumbled into the skin of your neck as he leaned forward to drape himself over you a little easier. “You’re a trooper though.” He praised. “Now let’s get you back somewhere comfier.” He quickly moved to open the passenger door before coming back to lift you up, setting you down gently onto the seat. Once you were inside you watched him walk around the back of the car to close the trunk and through the rearview mirror you could see him squat down behind the car, his hands running through his hair. 

By the time he finally climbed behind the wheel, you could see the wet marks on his cheeks that hadn’t been there earlier. Clearly he hadn’t wanted you to see him cry so you didn’t say anything about it, simply lifting his hand once he tangled his fingers with yours so that you could kiss it. If you hadn’t already been slapped with the realization that you were in love with him, you were pretty sure you wouldn’t be able to deny it after today. 

At the hotel, Cale got checked in and took the bags up before coming to help you, supporting your bad side as you hobbled along inside. In your room, he helped you change into clean clothes before fetching some ice and insisting you relax in bed with your ankle propped up and ice on it. Only then did he go about changing himself and you watched him, tears pooling in your eyes. They weren’t from the pain, honestly you didn’t even notice that much anymore, rather it was from how utterly selfless he had been, once again putting all of your needs above his own. 

So when he fell asleep beside you, you didn’t say a word, content to just be, certain he needed the nap after hiking through insane terrain with that much added weight attached to him. 

Cale had been asleep for about an hour and a half when you finally slipped from bed to use the bathroom. Your ankle was stiff and ached, but the pain was no longer shooting up your leg and you could put some pressure on your foot. Deciding that you were not going to let a minor sprain ruin your last night alone together you quickly grabbed the other lingerie set you’d brought as well as the little black dress. Giving yourself a quick sponge bath, you dressed in the clean clothes before sneaking out for your makeup bag. 

Cale was still sound asleep even after you finished and though you wanted to let him rest, you were hungry and you definitely needed to eat before you took another set of pain relievers. 

Sliding onto the edge of the bed, you brushed some hair from his face before leaning down to kiss him lightly. 

“Cale…hun…wake up.” You urged. As his blue eyes slowly fluttered open, you smiled at the expression on his face as he took you in looking all dressed up. 

“Wha…?” The sound spilled from his throat so suddenly that you couldn’t help but giggle softly. 

“Your girlfriend wants some dinner. And ankle injury or not…she plans on enjoying her last night with you in Iceland.” Cale pushed himself to sit up in bed and you shifted to move so that he could get up. 

“Holy shit you’re hot.” He mumbled and the butterflies danced in your stomach at his words. 

“I know. The k-tape matches so nicely.” You joke. “Now get up, clean up if you want, change, and let’s go get some food.” You demanded teasingly. 

“Hmm…my girl is bossy when she’s injured. Interesting.” Cale hummed, moving to do what you had requested of him. 

When Cale finally stepped out of the bathroom looking refreshed and super sexy in just some nice jeans and a button-up, you snatched the room key off the desk and slid your feet into sandals. 

“Seriously…you look stunning.” He complimented again, his eyes taking an extra beat to run up your body. 

“Thank you.” Your skin flooded with heat at his compliment and you slid your fingers up along his back as he held the door open for you. “You look really good too.” You grinned. 

Dinner was shared over glasses of wine, the pair of you talking about your favorite things from the trip. This time tomorrow you’d be on a plane home and you didn’t even want to think about crawling into an empty bed for the first time in over a week. Focusing your attention on only the good things made you happy and it felt right to essentially conclude your time in Iceland in a similar fashion to the way it had started. 

You were a little bit tipsy by the time you returned to the room…both from the wine and the wonderful dinner with Cale. Draping your arms around his waist, you tucked yourself against his chest, peering up at him. 

“I know I’ve said it a couple times…but this has been the most wonderful trip…” You whispered. “I’m a lucky woman.” 

“After everything…I think this trip was exactly what we both needed.” Cale stated, downplaying his efforts. Sometimes he was too humble for his own good. 

“Will you shut up and accept the praise?” You murmured exasperatedly. “Or at the very least…shut up and help me out of this dress?” It wasn’t that you needed his help…it was that you wanted him to reveal the surprise underneath himself. 

“Bossy.” Cale repeated, lifting you up and carrying you across the room to the bed. As he laid you down, his hands slid your dress up over your ass revealing the bright blue lace you were wearing. At the sight of the lattice pattern across your stomach, Cale’s eyes practically bugged out of his head and you watched him swallow hard. 

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me…” Cale grunted, tugging the rest of the dress off of your body as quickly as he could. “Holy fuck.” Cale’s tongue flicked across his lips, repeatedly wetting them as he stared down at you. 

Reaching up, you slid your fingers together to undo the buttons of his shirt one at a time. When you reached the final button and Cale had yet to say anything else, you glanced back up at him to find his eyes glassy with lust. 

“Cat got your tongue there Cale?” You giggled, the sound turning to a quick shriek as Cale nipped a mark into your neck before kissing you. “Careful with the marks there hun…unless you want our secret to be out the minute we see your parents.” You whispered. Cale seemingly took your words to heart because he dropped down your body, leaving marks on your breasts and lower belly and even your inner thigh…all places summer clothing would cover. 

After a moment he returned to kiss you again and though the kiss started messy and x-rated, by the end, it was soft and languid. Knowing that you getting hurt had put Cale through the wringer emotionally and that he was likely thinking about what happened when you both went home tomorrow, you didn’t question him on the rapid flip of behavior. If he needed to work out those emotions physically, you were more than willing to let him use you to reach those ends. 

“Make love to me?” You whispered, fingers dragging gently through his hair. “Want you inside me.” 

“Yeah sweetheart…I can do that.” Cale agreed, nodding his head slightly before leaning down to kiss you again. 

As his hands drifted up and down your body you noted how careful he was being. He was hesitant about the weight of his body over you, how his fingers drifted along your skin, how his tongue explored your mouth as he kissed you. It made you feel like you were the most precious thing in the world…and maybe to him you actually were. 

By the time he even brushed his fingers against the lace, your body was tingling and heat was spread from head to toe. As much as you were absolutely aching for more, you didn’t dare rush him, knowing that after all he had given you, you could just bear with him to make sure that he was getting everything he needed in return. 

As Cale slowly slipped the lace off of your body, you whispered soft nothings to him, watching as his cheeks flushed at your words. When he started to slip down your body, you assured him that he didn’t have to do that…but your words fell on deaf ears and Cale settled himself between your thighs. 

“Just need a taste.” He mumbled, his nose bumping against your clit as he dove into your core. Like all his other movements had been tonight, the flick of his tongue inside you was slow. In a way, it was the sweetest torture because you wanted so much more. At the same time, you basked in the way Cale cared for you, affection swirling through you. 

Cale’s little ‘taste’ had you far closer to orgasm than you had expected by the time he finally pulled away, his lips and chin glistening with your juices. Sliding off the bed, he shucked his jeans and boxer briefs to the floor before climbing back over you, his dick hard against his belly. 

“Need you.” You pleaded, desperate to feel the stretch of your walls around him as he settled inside you. 

“Don’t worry…I got you.” Cale murmured, his tip sliding through your slick folds before easing inside slowly. Bottoming out, Cale grunted and you moaned, the sounds echoing through the room. 

You’d had slow sex before but this was something else. Despite the lazy pace, Cale’s thrusts were immediately unsteady and he quickly ducked his head into your shoulder like he was trying to ground himself. 

Torn between the pleasure growing inside you and your concern for Cale’s behavior you trailed your nails lightly over his back while your mouth peppered kisses against his head. 

Something was different. Something had been different for a few days. You’d assumed it was nothing…but maybe you’d been wrong. The rotation of Cale’s hips caused you to whine out his name unconsciously and when he lifted his head for just a moment and your eyes met his, it hit you all at once. 

He loves you. 

He didn’t need to say it for you to know it. The unspoken words, the moments where you felt like you had been missing something, they suddenly all made sense. Immediately tears poured down your cheeks and when Cale realized you were crying he froze. 

“Shit…am I hurting you?” He breathed. 

“No.” You whispered back, pulling his mouth down to yours so that you could kiss him, pouring everything you had into the action. The realization that he loves you the way that you love him; the fact that you were connected so intimately…it was all too much for your body to handle and you went flying over the edge, your body clinging to him tightly. Your mutual moans were muffled by each other’s mouth and you were coming down from your climax when you felt Cale spill inside you. 

When you’d asked Cale to make love to you, you hadn’t been expecting that. 

“Holy…” You gasped, your hands shaking as you ran them through your hair. 

“Yeah…” Cale mumbled, bracing his hand against your hip as he prepared to slip out of you. “I…” One look in his eyes told you exactly what he was thinking of saying. But honestly, after that, it wasn’t something you needed him to say. You felt it deep in your bones and while of course you wanted to hear it, you had a feeling that the same thing that was holding you back was doing the same for him. There would be a proper time and place to say those words…but right now wasn’t it. 

“I know.” You simply replied, cupping his rosy cheeks in your palms. “I know.” Cale kissed you again and it was clear that those words were all you needed to say. 

**Dress and Lingerie:**

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Days 8 and 9 tourist sights: https://hockeylvr59.tumblr.com/post/629087777568522240/day-8-hv%C3%ADtserkur-and-horseback-riding-pictured


	15. Chapter 15

Just like that, it was all over. You’d spent ten days in Iceland with Cale. Ten days that you were never going to forget. After spending your last morning visiting some lighthouses, another black sand beach, and a bridge spanning a rift valley, you were climbing back on a plane to fly to Calgary. Your little oasis with Cale was about to be broken by the harsh realities of the real world. 

Your bed being cold without Cale sleeping beside you. 

Your work email overflowing to the point you didn’t even know where to start.

Having five days to plan a Canada Day party which you’d forgotten you’d agreed to host.

Oh…and your parents coming to stay with you in two days. 

_______

The fact that you were able to stand in your backyard surrounded by friends and family July 1st was something that would never have happened without help. 

You hadn’t heard from Cale all day Saturday, but when your phone buzzed with a text on Sunday morning you couldn’t help the warm feelings that rose inside you.

_Please tell me I’m not the only one sleeping like shit…_

He certainly wasn’t. But at least he could nap after training…you weren’t nearly that lucky and you told him so. That led to a conversation about the million things you suddenly had to do in the next few days and how you weren’t sure you could get it all done. 

And because he was legitimately the best boyfriend, item by item, Cale volunteered to help you check things off your list. He went to the grocery store with a list of all the food needed. He went to the liquor store for beer, wine, and other spirits. He and Taylor came over to do yard work so that you didn’t have to worry about it. He even picked your parents up from the airport when you had a last minute showing pop up. 

Needless to say, you weren’t overstating it when you said Cale literally held your sanity in his hands. 

For the first time since the plane home, you were able to steal a kiss as your parents made their way into the house after Cale dropped them off. 

“Add this to the tally of things I owe you for.” You’d declared. 

“I accept payment in kisses.” Cale teased. A quick glance around revealed you were alone for at least the moment, and you pressed up onto your toes letting your lips seek out his. 

“That’s all I can do right now…” You murmured, looking over your shoulder again. “But I’ll make the rest up to you later I swear.” 

“It’s fine, sweetheart.” Cale grinned. “I’ll see you in a couple days. Enjoy time with your parents.” 

You’d given your parents the grand tour of the house, setting them up in the guest room. Your mom hadn’t even sat down before she was asking what she could do to help prepare for the party. 

Yeah…you had some good helpers. As your yard started to fill up around lunchtime, you grabbed a wine cooler, starting to mingle. Your parents were there, Cale’s parents and brother were coming as were his grandparents, some of your parents’ friends were planning on stopping by, and quite a few of Cale and Taylor’s friends had also been invited. It was definitely the kind of party you had envisioned when you first stepped foot out here. 

“Happy Canada Day!” Cale greeted, appearing suddenly behind you and pressing a quick kiss to the top of your head. 

“You guys are here!” You exclaimed, twisting to wrap him in a quick hug, careful not to let it linger too long. 

“Yep. The whole crew is here.” Cale agreed, motioning to where his mom was eagerly engaged in a hug with yours having not seen each other in quite a while. “And I see you’re trying to make me pop a boner in front of everyone.” He whispered, his eyes raking up your body quickly. 

“It’s just a dress Cale.” You whispered back, eyes teasing. “Nothing special.” 

“Except your legs look a mile long.” He grumbled, causing a laugh to spill from your throat. 

“Oh suck it up buttercup.” You said, shaking your head. 

“Suck what up?” Gary inquired, moving over to hug you, your dad right behind him. 

“I told Cale he was in charge of setting up the lawn games and he’s whining about it.” You declared, excuse spilling from your lips on the fly. The look on Cale’s face was priceless and you struggled to keep your expression level as he looked at you. Gary quickly shook his head, chastising his oldest son and you mouthed the word ‘sorry’ at Cale as he shook his head and moved to grab Taylor to help him. 

Playing hostess kept you quite busy and with so many people around you really couldn’t sneak much time with Cale. It had already been a couple hours and you hadn’t even spoken to him beyond the brief conversation when they arrived. Watching as he played spike ball with his brother and some friends across the yard caused that familiar ache to spread through your body telling you that you were going to combust if you couldn’t at least properly kiss him. 

After a few more minutes, Cale disappeared inside and you excused yourself from conversation declaring that you needed to bring up some more drinks from the basement. 

Closing the back door, you waited at the top of the basement stairs for Cale to return and when you spotted him you gently tugged him toward you. 

“Come ‘ere.” You murmured quietly in case anyone else was in ear shot inside. Pulling him all the way down into the basement, you guided him around the corner before stretching to kiss him deeply. “Hi.” You greeted your forehead resting against his when you finally pulled away. 

“Hey sweet girl.” Cale replied, his hands easily settling along your hips. 

“Needed to kiss you.” You mused. “I miss you.” 

“Miss you too…but you look like you’re enjoying yourself. This is one of the things you wanted.” Cale acknowledged. 

“It is and I am.” You agreed, your fingers running down his stomach feeling his muscles constrict under your touch. “You look like you’re having fun too. You look pretty sexy out there.” 

“Don’t start something we can’t finish.” Cale groaned, quickly responding to your tone of voice. 

“Who said I can’t finish it?” You questioned. “We just have to be quick.” As you spoke you were already sinking to your knees, your fingers dipping down to Cale’s shorts. 

“Y/N…you don’t….shit.” Cale breathed, his hips bucking as you took him into your mouth after sliding his shorts and boxer briefs down just enough. Taking everything you had learned from the last time, you bobbed your head up and down Cale’s length, your fist stroking what you couldn’t take. It was a quick and dirty blow job, Cale’s cheeks flushing a deep crimson as you ran your tongue along the veins of his cock each time you pulled off to breathe. 

Sucking the tip of his cock you peeked up at him, watching as his head fell back against the wall behind him. 

“Gonna cum…” Cale whispered. 

“That’s what I want handsome. Cum down my throat.” You mumbled, sinking back down on his length. As you pushed the limits of your gag reflex, you felt Cale’s cock twitch before ropes of semen spilled into your mouth and throat. Swallowing as quickly as you could, you tried not to gag or choke before finally pulling off him, a mix of saliva and semen linking your lips to his dick. 

Wiping your lips, you gently worked Cale back into his clothes as he stood panting above you. 

“You’re insane.” Cale mumbled as he finally leaned down to kiss you. “Our parents are just outside…my grandparents are outside.” 

“Like the risk of getting caught didn’t just make you cum harder than usual down my throat.” You sassed, fixing your dress to make sure it didn’t look too rumpled. Cale couldn’t fight you because he knew you were right and as you moved across the basement to grab another six pack of beer you felt his eyes linger. 

“Now make yourself useful and grab that case of drinks. I bumped into you on your way back outside and made you come help me. Cover story.” You winked, biting your lip as you made your way back upstairs. 

You had barely got the new beers stuck into the cooler when your mom grabbed you. 

“You haven’t showed us those vacation pictures yet. Laura and I are dying to see them. Grab your computer and we’ll meet you in the living room.” 

Not being given a choice, you nodded and watched as your mom crossed the yard, grabbing Laura and Cale’s grandma. Looking back toward the mixed drink station you saw Cale standing with one of his buddies pouring shots. 

A few quick strides had you at his side.

“Pour me one of those?” You insisted. 

“Everything okay Y/N?” Cale asked, tone neutral though his eyes showed a hint of concern. 

“Just pour me a drink Cale. I’m about to go sit through the vacation slideshow with our moms…” Cale’s friend moved a few steps away but you lowered your voice further before continuing. “…And I’m not doing that with the taste of your cum in my mouth.” 

Cale nearly sputtered, but quickly recovered, pouring you a shot before clinking his glass against yours as you downed them. 

“Wish me luck.” You murmured, shaking your head just slightly as you moved from his side and into the house. In your bedroom, you made doubly sure you had pulled up the correct photo album before you carried your laptop into the living room, hooking it up to the tv. 

For the next half hour you explained the photos when necessary and listened as all of the women in your lives raved on how beautiful they were and what a wonderful trip it must have been. While these photos stirred up so many memories, this wasn’t the album that you’d found yourself looking at repeatedly. No…it was the other album that you loved most of all. The one full of pictures of you and Cale looking so completely head over heels for each other. For now though, that album was something just for you, even if you were looking forward to the day you could print some of the pictures and hang them in your bedroom. 

As you finished, your dad and Gary came barreling into the house wanting to know where everything was to start grilling up dinner. Taking your laptop back to your room, you got the guys everything they needed before leaving them to it. Meanwhile, you finished off the few remaining things that needed done to the sides, pulling those and condiments out of the fridge. 

“What do you mean after everything that happened between Cale and Y/N.” You mom’s voice slowly grew louder and your stomach dropped as you brain raced to catch up with the pieces of conversation you’d missed. 

“Y/N didn’t tell you about Cale’s pregnancy scare with his ex? It caused major strain on their relationship.” 

“No…” You mom insisted as she stepped into the kitchen. You hadn’t mentioned it assuming Laura would and apparently Laura had expected you to and hadn’t herself. 

“Can we not bring up old wounds?” You said, not realizing the snap behind your words. “She was an idiot who really hurt him and we should just be glad that it all worked out the way it did. Things are finally getting back to normal so can we please not drag this out any longer than we already have?” You were done and over with having to think about Cale’s ex… you knew it still hurt him a little even if he pretended it didn’t and you couldn’t help but be defensive and protective. 

Your mom and Laura shared a look, but neither said anything in response, instead asking if there was anything they could do to help. 

“No. I’ve got it. Thank you.” You assured them. You remained in the kitchen, your chest heaving until dinner was completely ready and all of your guests had been told to dig in. Then you slipped into your room, closing the door behind you as you tried to calm your raging emotions. 

After a few minutes, a knock sounded and you expected it to be your mom on the other side. Instead Cale popped his head in before stepping inside and closing the door. His hands rubbed at the back of his neck and his body language drew a sigh from your lips. 

“How much of that did you hear?” 

“Enough.” Cale responded, sitting down next to you on your bed, his arm draping around you. “You okay?” He questioned. 

“I should be asking you that.” You replied flatly. “I’m sorry.” 

“I have no idea what you’re even apologizing for..so don’t.” You couldn’t help but lean into Cale’s body as his fingers traced up and down your arm. “If I kiss you will that help you calm down enough to get some dinner?” He teased, lifting your chin up so that he could ease his mouth over yours gently. Slowly your body relaxed under his kiss and when you broke apart you certainly felt a little bit better. 

“That’s my girl.” Cale grinned, seeing the soft smile reappear on your face. “C’mon.” He prompted, offering a hand out to pull you up off the bed. 

“Hey Cale.” You stopped him, pulling him back toward you. “I don’t think you were wearing this lip color before…probably should fix that.” You smiled, reaching out to rub the makeup off his mouth from your reapplication shortly before. “I’ll be out in a minute.” You assured him as you leaned against your bathroom door wanting to make sure that you didn’t look too out of place. 

No one spoke a word of what had happened during dinner and as the sun started to set the majority of your guests left, leaving just your family and Cale’s as the guys started a small fire in the firepit. You’d stepped inside to use the bathroom and when you returned the only seat left around the fire was on the loveseat beside Cale. 

Settling in beside him you smiled as he widened the spread of his legs so that his thigh was pressing against yours. It was a subtle move but the skin to skin contact was beyond welcome and you were grateful, knowing he worked the seating so the two of you could share. Having grabbed another drink, you felt the pleasant hum of alcohol starting to build after awhile. Around the same time you started to shiver as the outside temperature dropped. 

“Anyone else need a refill?” Cale inquired when he moved to stand up, his own drink empty. A chorus of yeses and nos followed him and when he returned he not only had his arms full of drinks but also the blanket from the back of your couch. Draping the blanket over your lap, Cale handed you a fresh drink making you smile. 

“Your son is trying to get me tipsy Laura.” You joked. 

“You’re already tipsy sunshine.” Cale declared as he dropped back down beside you. “And you’re allowed to be. You worked really hard to pull this together and today’s been pretty awesome.” Cale’s praised was echoed by everyone else and you took it as best you could considering compliments weren’t your thing. 

“I had some help…let’s be fair.” You shrugged. 

“Oh my god. You and my brother are the two most humble people I have ever met.” Taylor groaned. “No wonder you’re best friends.” 

Grinning over at Cale, you let your eyes fall shut after a moment, just enjoying the sounds of your families spending time together. Feeling Cale’s hand slide under the blanket to your inner thigh made your eye pop open and you eyed him carefully. 

‘Just relax.’ He mouthed before jumping back into the conversation. As he spoke, his hands slid under your dress until his fingers were brushing against the fabric of your panties. Laura asked you a question about something, honestly you were too focused on Cale’s hand to remember your answer, but once you had finished Cale’s fingers slid under your underwear. Nimble fingers stroked over your clit and your eyes fluttered shut again. 

Hopefully it just looked like you were sleepy, because you weren’t sure you could pay full attention to what was going on around you when Cale’s hand was doing things like _that_. 

“Oh.” You gasped, drawing everyone’s attention to you. Cale’s hand stilled as your mom asked if you were okay. 

“Yeah. I’m fine.” You insisted. “My ankle is still tender and I shifted it wrong.” Your excuse turned the attention to Cale’s heroics at the cave in Iceland and as your families talked about it and how they would have reacted so far from medical attention, Cale’s fingers shifted to curl inside of you. 

Though he couldn’t move much, this was the first time he was touching you since he made love to you that last night of vacation. Considering you were wound tighter than a spring, Cale’s fingers curling inside you as his thumb rubbed against your clit were quickly pushing you toward an orgasm of your own. 

Thankfully the darkness masked the subtle nuances of your face as Cale’s fingers made you fall apart. As you came down from your high, Cale wiping his fingers on either your dress or the blanket you weren’t quite sure, you took another long sip of your drink. Cale had just finger fucked you feet from both of your families who could both see and hear you! And to think he’d said you were insane for going down on him with your families outside! 

Your brain was spinning trying to process what the fuck had just happened and how much you had enjoyed it. The two of you were seriously taking the whole ‘sneaking around like teenagers’ thing to the next level. It was a miracle you hadn’t gotten caught. Lost in thought you missed the fire starting to die out and Gary mentioning that they should probably get going. It wasn’t until Cale pulled you to your feet so his family could hug you that you caught up with reality. 

“I’m gonna help this tipsy one inside real quick and then I’ll meet you at the car.” Cale insisted once hugs had been exchanged. His arm swung under your legs, picking you up bridal style and after weaving through doorways, he gently laid you down on your bed. 

“We’re gonna talk about that later.” You mumbled, yawning softly. 

“Whatever you say sweetheart. Get some sleep.” Cale replied, kissing your forehead as he tucked you in. 

Your bedroom door creaked shut with Cale’s departure as the words fell unconsciously from your lips. 

“Love you.” 

**Dress:**

  



	16. Chapter 16

5 days. It had been 5 days since you’d seen Cale at your Canada Day party. It was silly and stupid, but this was the longest you’d gone without seeing him since he came home in May and you were going crazy. 

Your parents had left yesterday, but with work you hadn’t gotten the chance to see him yet. Having spent your entire day in meetings with clients, now you were wrapping up a three hour open house and you were exhausted. Just as you were about to pack up, you heard the door open again and you sighed, ill wishes for whoever decided to wait until the very last moment to show up flooding through your mind. 

Pasting a professional but ingenuine smile on your face, you turned to greet whoever had come through the door. When your eyes landed on a familiar broad figure and a set of rosy cheeks you gasped, your true smile quickly taking over your face. 

“What are you doing here?” You reacted, heart pounding at the sight of Cale standing across the room from you. 

“Thought my girl could use a friendly face to end her night.” Cale hummed. “I have ice cream in the car…wanna take a drive?” 

“Could definitely use a friendly face.” You agreed. “Let me lock up.” 

It only took you a few minutes to finish up, grabbing your things before heading out, the door locked behind you. Cale’s car was parked in front of yours and after dropping your things in your backseat you locked that as well before moving to where he was standing, waiting for you. 

His hands fell to your hips as you pressed up to kiss him, air filling your lungs as you felt like you could breathe again for the first time in days. 

“Let’s go before this ice cream melts.” Cale murmured against your lips before finally pulling away. Knowing that you could safely leave your car here until later, you climbed into Cale’s passenger seat, smiling at the cooler on the floor. As he drove, Cale talked about his day until he eventually pulled into a local park. You’d come here many times as children and the views were more appreciated now than they had been then. Grabbing the cooler, you let Cale lift you onto the hood of the car before he hopped up beside you. 

Handing you a pint of your favorite ice cream, Cale pulled out a second pint for himself. Chocolate…shocking. Giggling to yourself, you uncapped your ice cream and grabbed a spoon from the cooler.

“What?” Cale asked, his expression making you giggle even more. 

“You’re so adventurous when it comes to ice cream flavors.” You stated sarcastically. “I bet I couldn’t even get you to try mine. You hate strawberry.” You knew it wasn’t typical but you’d loved strawberry ice cream ever since you were little. Cale on the other hand, insisted that he hated it. There was no way he’d even taste the strawberry banana shortcake ice cream he’d brought for you. 

So when Cale’s spoon swooped over and pulled a large spoonful from your container, your jaw nearly dropped in surprise. Intrigued, you just watched as him he ate the bite, trying to read his expression. After he swallowed he seemed to be pondering and you waited patiently for some reaction. 

“Okay…maybe I was wrong…” Cale admitted after a moment. “That’s actually pretty good.” A triumphant grin spread across your face and you leaned back a little, basking in your tiny win. 

“Is it now?” You teased, popping another spoonful into your own mouth. “I’m so telling your mom about this.” 

“No need to be a braggart.” Cale pouted. 

“What?! This is a momentous occasion. I have been trying to get you to do this for 20 years! And every time you said you hated strawberry!” Cale snuck another bite from your container, just shaking his head at you. 

“I just can’t believe it took girlfriend status to get you to give in.” You declared, stealing a bite from his as well. Though you absolutely didn’t need to be eating a pint of ice cream, especially when you hadn’t had dinner, you relaxed on the hood of Cale’s car stealing bites back and forth until both pints were gone. And when Cale kissed you again after tossing the trash in a can nearby, you could taste the combination of strawberries and chocolate on his tongue. 

“I really needed this.” You murmured, hands sliding down along his sides as he stood in front of you. 

“I know.” Cale replied. “I did too.” He added, pulling you closer, your thighs spreading around his body. For a few minutes, you sat with him between your thighs just enjoying being together. But eventually, he stepped back, offering a hand out to help you slide down from the hood. 

Once you were on your feet, Cale pulled you across the parking lot to the closest playground. There he guided you onto the swings before starting to push you. 

“I remember when this was the other way around.” You commented, peeking over your shoulder at him. “And the time you tried to push me because you felt bad you were the only one getting to swing and you landed promptly on your ass because you were not prepared for impact.” Cale’s groan told you he remembered as well and you giggled again. “It was cute. You’ve always just wanted to take care of me.” 

Cale didn’t respond, instead just continuing to push you higher and higher on the swing, wind blowing across your face. When you finally got tired of swinging, you let your feet drag along the ground until you had slowed enough to hop off. 

“Do you want a turn?” You questioned, certain you knew the answer but asking anyway. When Cale shook his head, you turned to head back to the car, leaning against the side as you waited for Cale to unlock it. 

“That hasn’t changed you know…” Cale whispered, his hand rubbing against the back of his neck as he stood just a few steps away from you. 

“What hasn’t?” You asked, shivering as you felt the shift from a playful energy to a more serious one. 

“Wanting to take care of you.” Your tongue swiped over your lips as a soft ‘oh’ spilled from your throat. “Lately I’ve kind of been thinking I wouldn’t mind taking care of you forever.” 

Forever was a big word and you worked hard to keep your breathing steady as Cale crowded you against the car. 

“I’m ready to say it if you are.” He murmured, his fingers brushing against your cheek. “I don’t fully know why we’ve been waiting…but I’m ready. We’re not in Iceland anymore. This is our normal world. This is real life. And the way I feel isn’t changing…at least not in the wrong direction. 

“Cale…” You gasped out, tears pricking at your eyes. You honestly weren’t sure how long you’d dreamed of this moment but it was somehow something you hadn’t expected but everything you had all at once. “I’m ready too.” 

“Good.” Cale breathed, his lips teasing over yours lightly. “I love you, Y/N. I really truly love you. Not as just my best friend, but as someone I kinda wanna spend the rest of my life with.” 

“I love you too. Like I’m head over heels in love with you. This is a million times better than I ever could have dreamed, being with you.” You responded, your tears not falling far before Cale’s fingers swiped them away. 

“Think we maybe should tell our parents now?” He chuckled, the look in his eyes that you’d seen before now making complete sense. 

“Soon.” You breathed. “Give me a couple days to process the fact that you love me.” 

“Of course.” Cale agreed. “There’s no rush. After all…we’ve got forever for them to learn don’t we.” 

“Because you love me.” You whispered giddily. “And I love you.” 

“Yeah sweetheart…I love you. You’re never going to get sick of those three words I don’t think…” He teased. 

“Not falling from your lips. Directed at me.” Kissing him again felt different. Steadier, easier, open. There was nothing to hide from now. No holding back. 

A honking horn was the sudden reminder that you were very much in a public place and you buried your head into Cale’s chest as he laughed. 

“Our timing just continues to be spot on doesn’t it?” Cale sighed. 

“Eh…we can work on that…if that’s all we need to improve I think we’re doing pretty good.” You shrugged. 

“We’re doing great.” Cale replied, kissing you one more time before opening the car door for you. 

Somehow with Cale, all the little moments were also the big moments. An ice cream date had led to your first ‘I love you’s’ just like a night in with takeout had led to your first kiss. It was a reminder to never take a single day for granted because they were all important, they all meant something. 

And now you had a forever filled with little moments to look forward to. All with the love of your life by your side. 


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> CALE MAKAR IS A CALDER WINNER!!!

Stampede was by far one of your favorite parts of summertime. Calgary erupted with good food and drinks and some great music. Of course, it was the last weekend of Stampede before you were finally able to make your way downtown to enjoy it. 

Having dipped out of work early, like pretty much everyone else since it was Friday after all, you went home and changed into a pair of denim shorts, a white tank and a light flannel shirt. Throwing on your seldom worn cowboy boots and grabbing your hat, you drove into downtown near Stampede Park. 

Cale and his family were already here and you texted him to see where they wanted to meet up. Grabbing your wallet you clipped your keys onto your shorts and pocketed your phone after receiving Cale’s text in response. Finally throwing your hat on, you weaved through crowds of people after entering the park, making your way over to the location Cale had directed you to. 

Spotting Cale before the rest of his family, you made your way over wrapping him in a friendly hug. You still hadn’t told your families you were together but it had only been four days since you’d shared your first ‘I love you’s’. Cale looked sexy as fuck dressed in jeans, his own flannel and cowboy hat. 

Thankfully you were distracted when Laura came over, pulling you away from her eldest son to chat about the plans for the night and whatever else was on her mind. It wasn’t long before Cale and Taylor were both pulling you away to go ride a couple rides and you laughed as the brothers bickered over which rides you needed to go on first. It had been like this every year for as long as you could remember and the outcome was always the same. Cale would claim older brother privilege while Taylor would plead for you to take his side. 

“I’m picking the first ride.” You declared pinching both boys in the side as you turned to walk toward your favorite. 

“Wait..what…that’s not how this goes?” Taylor sputtered. 

“It is now.” You insisted as you climbed onto the first ride. Taylor was pouting but Cale just shook his head going with the decision you’d made. 

“Oh stop the pouting.” You teased, bumping your shoulder against Taylor’s as you exited the ride a few minutes later. “You’re not a kid anymore.” 

“But I’m still…”

“The baby…I know.” You said shaking your head. “Your pick bud.” You proclaimed, causing Cale to whine. 

“Just make your brother happy…you know we’ll do your ride next.” You whispered as Taylor practically ran ahead to the next ride. Cale grumbled a bit but went along and you shook your head. “I forget that I have to babysit the two of you every year.” You joked. “I thought I was done with that when you both became adults.” 

Taylor’s ride was one of Cale’s least favorites, but he went along with it anyway before quickly dragging both of you to his choice after. By the time you finished that and the one ride all three of you agreed on, both of their stomachs were growling loudly. 

“Okay boys…let’s go find mom and dad.” You declared. The words had slid from your mouth without a second thought and while Cale didn’t seem to notice them either, Taylor did a double take as he raced to catch back up. 

The five of you got dinner at one of the many food stands before settling in at a picnic table to eat. Conversation flowed easily, you truly felt like a part of this family and that was even without considering your new relationship with Cale. Though a tiny part of you was worried about what his family would think…what your family would think…you felt confident that nothing was really going to change. You fit here and your relationship with Cale could only improve that. 

After dinner, you all started walking around, stopping at various vendor tents, killing time before heading over to the Nashville North stage for the nightly concert. 

“We’re going to go get drinks…why don’t you and Cale head to grab spots?” Laura declared. As Cale’s family walked in the other direction, you looked over at Cale. He really looked so fucking handsome and you couldn’t help but slip your hat off as you took a step closer to him, pressing up for a kiss. You’d been wanting to kiss him all afternoon but had refrained…now you couldn’t help yourself any longer. Cale’s hand slid into the curve of your back as he kissed you again, neither of you noticing that Laura had doubled back toward you, the question about whether you wanted a certain type of cider falling off as she witnessed you locking lips with her son.

“Are you two kidding me??” She practically shrieked, her eyes wide. His mother’s voice drew Cale’s attention and he pulled back from the kiss like he’d been shocked. It took another second for her voice to register in your ears as well but once it had you turned around, your stomach twisting violently. 

This was NOT how you planned to tell your families. 

Cale’s thumb rubbed circles against your back and though his cheeks were red, he still radiated an air of confidence as he looked over at Laura who had hardly moved. 

“What did you need mom?” He questioned, flipping the subject on its head away from the embarrassment flooding your cheeks. Laura repeated her question about the cider and when no response fell from your lips, Cale answered for you. 

“We’re going to talk about this later.” Laura mumbled as she looked between the two of you again. 

“Sure mom.” Cale agreed, his lips grazing against the top of your head. As she walked away, you turned in Cale’s arms, burying your head against his chest. “Well I don’t think that was what we had in mind.” He chuckled. 

“I blame the damn cowboy hat.” You mumbled, your words pulling a full laugh from Cale’s body. “Fuck.” You added, groaning softly. 

“It’s fine Y/N.” Cale insisted. “You know my parents love you. Yeah mom is a little shocked but it’s all gonna be fine. It’s not a big deal.” 

“Cale…your mom just saw me with your tongue down my throat…” You whined. 

“And she’s probably planning at least the engagement party if not the wedding…” Cale teased. “Hey…” He soothed. “I love you okay. Take a breath.” His arms tightened around you in a full hug and he pressed soft kisses along your head. “So our timing still sucks…but bright side…at least now we don’t have to figure out how to tell them.” 

Though you still weren’t fully composed, you let Cale pull you to the concert venue, where he pulled you back into his chest, his hands falling to your hips. When his family joined you it wasn’t clear whether Laura had said anything to Gary and Taylor or not. No one said anything about it at least, and you took the glass Taylor handed you, eagerly taking a large sip. 

Thankfully the band tonight was a good one and you were able to lose yourself in the music. The alcohol in the cider and the heat from Cale’s palm also helped ground you letting you enjoy yourself until the band packed up for the night and it was time to head home. 

“I’ll ride with Y/N and we’ll meet you back at the house.” Cale declared. Laura looked like she wanted to protest but a look from Gary silenced her and they headed off with Taylor in the direction of their car while Cale followed you to yours. “Want me to drive?” He inquired. “Or are you good?” 

Without hesitation you tossed him your keys, sliding into the passenger seat as anxiety crept back up on you. 

“Sweetheart…you gotta breathe.” Cale urged, his hand squeezing your own as he navigated through traffic. “I know you’re embarrassed but…you’re making this a bigger deal than it needs to be and I’m starting to think you’re not just embarrassed about the timing but about me.” 

Cale’s confession was vulnerable and you cursed silently, forcing yourself to take a deep breath. 

“You know that’s not it right? I love you. I just…” Every thought that had been racing through your head since you heard Laura’s voice now seemed utterly foolish and hurtful framed by Cale’s thoughts. 

“You’re right. We have nothing…or at least very little…to be embarrassed about.” You breathed. “I’m sorry for hurting you. That wasn’t my intention.” 

“I know it wasn’t.” Cale spoke softly. Regret sat uncomfortably in your stomach for the rest of the drive and once Cale put the car in park, you immediately unbuckled before racing around to his side. 

“I love you. I could never be embarrassed about being with you.” You whispered, pulling him into a soft but deep kiss. The sound of car doors slamming caused Cale to pull away and you looked up to find his family walking up the driveway behind you. “Let’s go share all the good news.” You murmured, your hand trailing down Cale’s chest gently until that smile you loved so much had returned to his face. 

“Yeah…let’s.” He agreed, his arm wrapped around your shoulders as you headed into the house. 

Cale’s family was waiting for you in the kitchen and though the weight of their gazes on you almost felt like an interrogation, you moved to grab bottles of water for you and Cale before settling onto a bar stool as Cale moved to stand behind you. 

It seemed like no one wanted to be the first to speak, but eventually it was Taylor who broke the silence. 

“Now the king size bed makes more sense.” His mumble made your jaw drop and you felt Cale fighting back a laugh. Seeing both your expressions and the looks of confusion on his parents’ faces Taylor continued. “What? She put a double bed in the master when she moved in and then swapped it with a king a week later…that made no sense. Now it does.” 

“Have you two been together this whole time?” Laura questioned, hurt flickering over her face. 

“If you mean since mid-May…yeah.” You admitted softly. 

“Two months…you’ve been together almost two months…and you didn’t think to tell us? Why?” Reaching across the island, you rested your hand over hers hoping that she wouldn’t pull away. 

“We kinda just wanted to feel it all out for ourselves first.”

“I didn’t want to have to answer a million questions when I went to see her.” You and Cale answered at the same time, though his answer was far more blunt than yours. 

“We were getting ready to tell you…” You sighed. “Just not like that.” 

“You mean I wasn’t supposed to find out by catching the two of you making out?” Laura teased, the mood in the room lightening significantly. 

“Apparently that was the cowboy hat’s fault.” Cale ribbed you to his whole family, his hands rubbing over your shoulders. 

“Throw me under the bus why don’t you.” You sassed back, sticking your tongue out at him as you tipped your head back. Cale pressed a quick kiss to your lips before you lowered your head and you smiled, heat rising in your cheeks. 

“How did this even happen?” Gary finally chimed in. “I mean I know your mother has been hoping for it for years but…” 

Though you left out quite a few details, you explained to Cale’s family how you’d realized something was there back in Denver but how you’d both waited until he came home before deciding to actually give it a shot. Taylor didn’t seem super interested and after giving you a quick hug and sharing a look with Cale he mumbled that he was going upstairs. 

“So when I suggested you take her to Iceland with you?” Laura mentioned, refocusing the conversation after Taylor’s disappearance. 

“I was already planning on asking.” Cale stated. Watching the two of you for a moment - the way you looked at each other, how your bodies reacted to each other - her eyes suddenly went wide. 

“There are more pictures aren’t there?” She gasped.

“Yeah there are more.” You nodded, taking Cale’s phone as he dropped it into your hands so that you could pull up the album. Sliding the phone across the island, you watched as Gary and Laura scrolled through them for a few minutes. When she looked up, tears were in her eyes and you couldn’t help but slide off of your stool to round the island. 

With your arms wrapped around her tightly, you felt your heart swell. 

“This is serious?” She whispered. Nodding, you smiled. 

“As serious as it gets.” You agreed. “We don’t know what the future holds…but we plan on finding out together.” A glance over at Cale almost made you cry because you could see in his eyes how much he enjoyed seeing you like this with his mom. 

“I already told her I love her.” Cale admitted. 

“No…” Laura gasped, the excitement on her face growing. 

“Yeah mom…we’ve said I love you.” You said. Laura’s face froze for a moment before she blinked quickly. 

“You just called me mom…” Though her words expressed shock, her face was hopeful and though you hadn’t even realized the implications of your word choice, you shrugged. 

“In love with your son or not…you’ve always been my second mom.” You insisted. “I guess I never realized that I hadn’t called you that before.” 

“I’d love for you to call me mom.” Laura promised. “You’ve always been my daughter but maybe my son will finally make it official.” Cale’s face was a mix of ‘don’t look at me’ and ‘you can bet on it’ and you sent him a smile. 

“There’s no rush on that. Right now we just want to enjoy the summer. Enjoy each other. We’ll take things a step at a time from there.” You assuaged her. 

“You don’t know how happy I am right now.” Laura nearly squealed. “Still a little shocked but so happy.” Hugging her again, you watched as she moved to hug Cale as well, leaning up to whisper in his ear causing his cheeks to flush. 

“You’ve always made him a better person.” Gary’s voice floated quietly to your ears. “He’s scored way outta his league with you.” 

“I don’t know about that.” You denied, stepping into Gary’s open arms. “Is it cool if I call you dad?” You whispered, hesitantly. 

“Of course it is.” He quickly agreed. “You are our daughter after all.”

Pulling back, you let out a yawn. “Cale…why don’t you take your girl home.” Gary instructed. 

Promising Laura that you would tell your own parents over the weekend, you eventually made your way out the door with Cale. You felt like you were about to burst from the love and acceptance you felt and you couldn’t help but kiss Cale as he moved to open your car door for you. 

“I told you it would be fine.” Cale murmured. 

“Don’t get used to always being right.” You warned jokingly. 

Cale’s hand fell to your thigh on the short ride home and you just watched him as he drove, your brain replaying tonight’s conversations in your head. 

It wasn’t until you climbed out of your car that you spoke again. 

“So do you think dad told you to bring me home so that you didn’t have to be pestered by mom all night?” 

“Maybe…either way I’m not complaining.” Cale smirked, unlocking your front door, holding it open for you. Kicking off your boots, you started down the hall toward the bedroom. Undressing in silence, you fell into bed beside Cale. You didn’t have to sleep alone tonight and that was honestly the best part of all of this. 

“I love you calling my parents mom and dad.” He whispered as your bodies curled together. “I never really thought about that aspect of things but you having that close of a relationship with them just makes me fall even more in love with you.” 

“I love them. Almost as much as I love you.” Your soft chirp turned to a shriek as Cale tickled you before pressing his lips to yours. The heat behind the kiss was minimal, enough to turn it into a make-out session but not enough to push it into anything more. Instead you just shared lazy kisses until you were practically falling asleep. 

And wrapped in Cale’s arms you slept soundly for the first time in two weeks. 


	18. Chapter 18

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note that this might be the dirtiest thing I've ever written...definitely nsfw content ahead fair warning.

You hadn’t realized you’d been waiting for the other shoe to drop until it went clattering to the floor. It could be worse…you tried to remind yourself. But that didn’t stop the ache in your chest or the tears that kept filling your eyes every time you thought you’d pulled yourself together. 

Sleeping in Cale’s arms Friday night was everything you needed and more. You’d gotten up Saturday morning and made breakfast together before you’d rushed off to work, a day filled with client meetings and house tours ahead of you. You’d parted with a kiss and an ‘I love you’, promises of talking later following you. 

With such a busy day, it wasn’t until Sunday afternoon that you finally had a spare minute to call your parents like you had promised Laura you would. 

“Hey mom.” You greeted, settling onto your couch, your legs tucked up underneath you. “Is dad around?” 

It took your mom a minute to fetch your dad but once they were both on the line you took a deep breath. 

“So I have some news for you.” You stated, your tone bright hoping to signal that this was all good news. “Cale and I are together.” 

Silence stretched on for an uncomfortably long time before your dad’s voice spoke up. 

“That’s great dear. I have to head out for an evening round of golf but I’m happy for you.” The sound of footsteps and the door came through the phone as your mom took it off of the speaker. 

“How long?” Your mom inquired, her voice seeming hesitant. 

“Officially almost two months…but we realized there was something here back in March. I never thought that it would ever be a possibility. But everything about it is so right. I love him mom and he loves me. We just fit together…I’ve never felt a connection with anyone else the way I do with him.” 

“Oh hunny…” Your mom mumbled, causing your back to stiffen. 

“You don’t sound happy for me.” You whispered, shocked. 

“I am happy for you…you know we love Cale…just maybe you should slow down before things get too serious.” 

“This is serious mom.” You insisted. 

“I just…I don’t want you to get hurt. Cale’s a good kid but there’s a significant age difference between the two of you. Plus he’s only there for the summer. What happens when he leaves?” Hearing your mom refer to Cale as a kid made the hair on the back of your neck bristle. 

“He’s not a kid mom. Neither of us are kids anymore. I know there’s an age gap but we’ve talked about anything and everything important related to that and it’s not an issue. We’re on the same page.” Before you could continue your mom cut you off.

“Honey…the boy is a young NHL star. He’s not ready to be thinking about settling down. You may think you’re on the same page but I don’t think you realize what you’d be giving up for him.” 

“You’re wrong.” You mumbled, your throat starting to tighten up. “I don’t know what happens when he leaves but we’ll figure it out when the time comes. Why can’t you just be happy for me?” 

“Because I know how much you’ve always cared about Cale and I just don’t want you to find out down the road that this was all a waste of time because the two of you want different things. I don’t want you to let your good judgment be clouded by lust. You’re a smart woman…don’t give up the life you’ve worked so hard to build for a summer fling.” 

Sobs wracked your body as you ended the call without another word. How could your mother say those things? It was like she didn’t know Cale at all…didn’t know you at all. She was wrong…you knew she was wrong. You and Cale were perfect for each other. This wasn’t some fantasy that would never manifest…this was real. The way Cale looked at you was real. His ‘I love you’s’ were real. And distance or time…that wouldn’t change anything. 

You sobbed on your couch for almost an hour before finally pulling yourself together. Your mother’s support or lack thereof was not going to define your relationship or your life. Determined not to let this consume you, you threw yourself into all of the cleaning that you had been putting off. There was laundry to be done, dishes to be washed, floors to be swept, mopped, vacuumed. 

And then when you finished all of those tasks, it was time to make yourself something to eat, before cleaning up those dishes as well. Of course, all of these tasks took twice as long when tears kept constantly springing up forcing you to put yourself together all over again. 

After dinner you pulled the final load of laundry out to fold. As your fingers wrapped around the fabric of Cale’s stolen t-shirt you sunk to the floor of your laundry room. How could she think that you wouldn’t receive in return ten times the worth of anything you had to give up to be with Cale? Gary had joked the other night that you were out of Cale’s league but it was absolutely 100% the other way around. 

Carrying the t-shirt back to your bedroom, you stripped out of your clothes, letting the soft fabric of the shirt wrap around you instead. Deciding it was late enough to go to bed, you locked up the house before crawling under the sheets, a scent that was so distinctly Cale wafting from the spare pillow as you pulled it against your chest. 

Tossing and turning, unable to sleep, you watched as the clock eventually reached 1:30am. Reaching blindly for your phone which you hadn’t bothered to look at all day, you first acknowledged that there wasn’t a single message from your mother after the abrupt end to your call. There were however multiple messages from Cale. 

_Hey sweetheart, just checking in to see how your day is going._ **(Received 2:02pm)**

 _Tell dad it’s unfair for him to kick my ass on the golf course every single time._ **(Received 5:27pm)**

_Haven’t heard from you today. You’re probably just enjoying your day off, you deserve it._ **(Received 8:16pm)**

_Something is wrong, I can feel it. I’m here if you want to talk and you know all you have to do is ask and I’ll come right over. I love you. If you want to handle it by yourself that’s okay too, just know you don’t have to._ **(Received 10:42pm)**

It wasn’t unlike Cale to send multiple messages through the day, just to let you know he was thinking about you. Normally they just made you smile, but this time they caused another fresh set of tears to form in your eyes, wetting your pillow. 

Without even fully realizing it, you were pressing on his contact information and then the phone was ringing. The second ring had barely started when you heard Cale’s voice come through the line. He must have heard you crying because suddenly you heard the rustle of fabric. 

“Give me fifteen. I’ll be there.” His sleepy voice insisted and then the call dropped. 

True to his word, almost fifteen minutes later on the nose you heard a key clicking in the lock of the front door. The sound of the door opening, closing, and being locked again followed before footsteps padded across the hardwood floors. When the bed finally dipped behind you, Cale’s warm body pressing firmly against your back, you let out a shaky breath in relief. 

“I can’t sleep.” You whispered as Cale’s fingers flexed gently around your hip. 

“Wanna talk about what’s wrong?” Cale prodded lightly, his warm breath fanning against the back of your neck as he spoke. And though you knew you should talk about it, you didn’t really know what there was to say. It sucked beyond belief that your mother wasn’t supportive but that only changed your relationship with her, not your relationship with Cale. 

This was good, you knew this was good. Cale coming over in the middle of the night because you needed him was just further proof. 

“No…I just…need you.” You rambled. 

“I’m right here sweet girl.” Cale affirmed. Though you could feel the heat of his body along your back, his hand draping over your middle, it wasn’t enough and you couldn’t explain it. 

“Closer.” You whispered. Within just a moment, Cale had turned you around, tugged you even closer, and tangled your legs together. Being pressed chest to chest was a little bit better, but it still wasn’t close enough to patch the holes of worry, doubt, and anger your mother had created. It would have to be good enough though, and you buried yourself into his body as much as you possibly could. 

“Y/N…” Cale breathed a few minutes later, his thumb lifting your chin so that he could kiss you. “You’re still shaking sweetheart. Please…what can I do?” He begged softly. “How can I quiet whatever voices in your head are making you feel this way?” 

“I don’t know.” You mumbled. “This…this will just have to be enough. This is already so much.” Still, your heart was pounding and echoes of your mother’s voice still lingered in your head. 

“Do you still want me closer?” Cale questioned, his hands sliding up along your side under the t-shirt. A weak nod was all it took for Cale to slide you out of your clothes, his own quickly following, forming a pile on the floor as he pulled you back against him. 

The skin to skin contact was better, you felt some of the weight come off of your chest. And though it might not be the most restful sleep, for the first time tonight you felt like you might actually be able to drift off. 

“How could she call this lust…a summer fling…” Your words were practically unintelligible as you mumbled into Cale’s bare chest, but apparently they were enough for him to piece things together because you heard him curse softly. His fingers slid up to cup the back of your head, tilting your face up to his. At the same time, his other hand brushed away the tears from your cheeks, his eyes full of despair and frustration as he looked at you. 

He seemed to acknowledge that this wasn’t something he could fix, that he needed to fix, but you could see how much he hated it all the same. Despite the late hour, the wheels in his head were spinning, searching for something that he could do to take away the pain you were feeling. 

“Can we try something?” He asked quietly. Shrugging, you nodded, no idea what he had in mind. He shifted you back from his body just an inch as his hand dropped from your cheek to slip between your legs. “Just relax my sweet girl…I know you trust me. This isn’t sex…not really.” He explained, urging your body to give in just a little. Despite not being in the mood, your body grew pliant under his fingers. 

“Cale…” You whimpered, confusion making your anxiety increase slightly. 

“Shh love…” He soothed. “You’ve heard of cockwarming haven’t you? I’m just gonna rest inside you, give you the closeness you need.” 

“Oh.” You gasped, pulling your bottom lip between your teeth. 

“You okay with that?” He inquired, his fingers moving from your core to shift your body in line with his. “Just want to give you what you need.” 

“Please.” You agreed, your fingers flexing against his bicep. Cale was still soft as he slid inside you, the rest of his body shifting to wrap around you now that you were joined together. This was absolutely as close as you could get to him and it was everything you didn’t know you needed. 

“Good? Bad? In between?” Cale asked, his lips pressing against your forehead lightly. 

“Good…so good.” You breathed, your body relaxing against him. “Thank you.” 

Little by little, every worry and negative emotion slipped from your mind until you finally fell asleep tucked against Cale’s chest with him resting deep inside of you. 

____

As the fog of sleep started to disappear, you groaned feeling worse than you usually did when you were hungover. Warm fingers brushing against your temple caused you to slowly blink your eyes open. The morning light revealed Cale’s bright blue eyes staring down at you and you let out a choked gasp as you felt him twitch inside of you. 

Holy shit…

Cale was inside of you. 

Every memory of last night flooded over you quickly at first before slowing down as you remembered how patient Cale had been, willing to try anything to help you sleep. Now, hours later, your bodies were locked in the same position. The only difference was where Cale had been soft inside of you last night, now he was hard, stretching and pressing against your vaginal walls. 

“Sleep okay?” Cale’s deep gravely morning voice questioned. 

“I slept…that alone is impressive.” You replied honestly. “Can’t believe you’re still inside me.” You admitted, voice awestruck. 

“Didn’t want to wake you by pulling out.” Cale explained. “But I need to now…so I can take care of this.” 

“How about you stay just a little longer…” You hinted. “Take care of your problem together. After all…your dick seems quite happy where he’s at.” A low grunt slipped from Cale’s throat in response to your words. 

“My girl wants fucked huh?” Cale stated. “I think we can make the time for that this morning.” 

The first few drags of his cock were rough, your body’s lubrication drying up overnight and the new lubrication from waking up to him inside of you this morning not having the chance to replace it until about the fourth stroke. 

Once your body adjusted though, you realized that having him inside of you all night had made you incredibly sensitive. Each piston of his hips drew a moan from your throat and your nails dug into his shoulders, clinging to him and the pleasure he provided. Spending hours joined together had apparently made Cale sensitive as well because suddenly you felt the sticky heat of his cum spurting inside of you as he came, a gasp of your name spilling from his lips. He went soft quickly, groaning as he came down from his climax. 

“That was embarrassingly fast.” Cale cursed, his lips pressing against your shoulder. 

“It’s fine Cale…I understand.” You assured him, fingers playing with his hair. This was the first time he’d cum before you and while your body was still worked up, you were okay with it after last night. 

“It’s not fine.” Cale stated adamantly. “I can’t leave my girl hanging.” 

“Cale…I swear it’s okay.” You pressed, feeling him slip out of you, his cum leaking out of your used pussy. Before you could slip out of bed to clean up, Cale’s hands were grabbing your waist, rolling you onto your back as his body sunk beneath the sheets. Feeling his lips against your thigh, you whimpered softly, hands reaching down to expose his head from the blankets. 

“Cale…your cum…” The flick of his tongue through your folds, collecting both your juices and his own semen stopped you in your tracks, your head falling back against the pillows. 

“We taste good together.” He mused, a smirk on his face as he spoke before diving back into your core like a man starved. 

“You cannot just say that.” You whined loudly, your hips jerking as he sucked your clit between his lips. “Fuck Cale…” 

Feeling more of his semen start to drip out of you made you whimper and Cale quickly read the noise for what it was, dipping lower between your thighs where he lapped it out of you slowly. What he was doing was so dirty that even with his barely-there touches you were a shaking mess in the sheets. 

“You gonna cum for me sweet girl?” Cale mumbled pulling back for air. “Gonna cum for me…give me the rest of my seed so I can fuck a fresh load into you?” One swipe of Cale’s tongue through your folds had you screaming as you fell apart, wave after wave of pleasure crashing over your body. You honestly weren’t sure whether that was one long orgasm or multiple short ones but by the time you came down, the gentle flicks of Cale’s tongue as he worked to clean you up were too much and you shoved his head away. 

“I don’t know what you like more. Me cumming inside you or me eating my cum out of you.” Cale teased, crawling up the bed over you. Kissing him was dirty as hell but you couldn’t resist, eager to find out what your mixed fluids taste like. It really wasn’t that bad and you ran your fingers down his back, resting them just above his ass. 

“As hot as that was…I’m still quite partial to you filling me up.” You breathed. “I’ll take as many loads as you can give me.” 

“Fuck.” Cale mumbled, growing hard against your stomach once more. 

“You got another one for me?” You murmured, reaching between your bodies to stroke his length gently. “Because you ate all of it out of me and now I feel empty. I need more.” 

“Yeah sweetheart…I’ll give you more.” Cale grunted, pressing back inside of you. His thrusts were quick, the need between the two of you too strong for slow sex. Neither one of you was going to last all that long this round, your vaginal walls already starting to flutter around his length. 

“God baby…your sweet pussy really wants my seed doesn’t it? Fluttering around me ready to milk every single drop possible from me.” 

“Need it.” You whine, your body aching to feel that sticky heat again. 

“Yeah sweetheart…I know you do.” Cale groaned. “Your body is so needy for it. One of these days I’m just going to keep you in bed, fucking you full over and over again, not letting a single drop slip out of you. You’d like that wouldn’t you? To be so full of me. Your hips tipped up to keep it all inside.” 

Cale’s words had you feeling like you were about to explode and your vaginal walls fluttered around him again as his hips stuttered. 

“You ready for it sweet girl? Ready to milk me dry?” Your nails dug crescent marks into his lower back as you clung to him, your chest heaving beneath him as your orgasm hovered just below the surface waiting for him to give you everything you needed. 

“Yeah you’re ready.” Cale hissed. “My girl is so ready. Here it comes.” Cale’s orgasm was long and hard and rope after rope of semen spilled inside of you. The feeling of it tipped you off of the cliff and you clamped down around him ensuring that he did indeed give you every drop. Where your first orgasm had been like a tsunami, this one was magma bubbling up and rolling slowly down the hill before cooling. 

You hadn’t even noticed Cale pull out, but when your eyes fluttered open he was standing at the edge of the bed just watching you. 

“You don’t even know how sexy you look all blissed out.” He grinned. “And I know you like keeping my cum inside but you should probably go use the bathroom.” He declared reaching out a hand to help you up, his semen dripping down your thighs as you walked the three feet to your bathroom. 

Having cleaned up, you found Cale sitting in his pajamas on the side of the bed. Stepping into his open arms you smiled down at him feeling his arms wrap around your waist. 

“Thank you.” You murmured, pecking his lips. “For coming over last night. For the cockwarming. For this morning.” 

“Are we good?” Cale asked, letting out a deep exhale of breath. 

“We were never not good.” You assured him. “My mother’s reservations don’t change anything. She obviously doesn’t know either of us as well as she thinks she does and I’m not going to let her unfounded concerns get in the way of something that I know is good and right.” Ruffling up his hair a little bit, you shook your head. “I love you Cale. I’ve waited a long time to find something this good. So I’m all in.” 

“You have to get to work don’t you?” Cale breathed. Glancing at the clock beside the bed you nodded. 

“Yeah I do. But not until you know that everything is okay. That I want more nights sleeping next to you. Nights sleeping with you inside me. Mornings where we bring each other pleasure over and over again. I want it all with you and I’m sure my mom will come around eventually. She’s gonna have to because I’m not letting you go.” 

“Not letting you go either.” Cale agreed. “Why don’t you go get ready for work and I’ll make breakfast.” 

“Perfect.” You grinned placing a lingering kiss to his lips. 

The other shoe may have dropped, but the floor was solid so there wasn’t even a scratch left behind. 


	19. Chapter 19

You were in the middle of a house showing when your phone started buzzing incessantly. Not wanting to seem unprofessional, you ignored it as you talked with your clients about the features of the house before sending them to explore on their own for a few minutes. 

Checking your phone you saw that you had missed three calls from Laura. There was no reason for her to be calling you repeatedly unless something was wrong and you quickly called her back, your heart pounding. 

“Hey mom I’m in the middle of a showing, what’s up?” 

“Have you heard from Cale today?” She asked.

“Not since first thing this morning…” You replied, anxiety growing. “Mom what’s going on?” 

“Cale’s not answering his phone. We don’t know where he’s at.” You could hear Gary in the background as the two of them rambled back and forth. “Y/N…there are some pretty nasty rumors online about him…” 

Your heart plummeted to the ground and your stomach twisted violently. 

“Send me screenshots?” You pleaded. After just a minute or two, images flooded your phone that made you want to physically vomit. 

**Guess even a Calder trophy winner can be a deadbeat dad.**

**He’s on vacation while she’s waitressing…classy move there Cale.**

**Guess he’s not so perfect after all is he? #quinnshouldhavewonthecalder**

Hearing the footsteps of your clients, you pocketed your phone attempting to mask all of the emotions rushing through your mind. After chatting with them about the house, you moved to leave and though you had planned to take them to see two more, your heart just wasn’t in it. Explaining that a family emergency had just popped up, you promised them you would reschedule as soon as possible before sliding into your car. 

Your attempt to get ahold of Cale went straight to voicemail and you groaned just wishing he would pick up. Opening first instagram and then twitter you realized just what had started it all. The avs had posted a summer update about Cale with a few pictures from Iceland that he must have sent their pr department. The top reply on twitter linked an instagram post from Sara’s page where she was obviously pregnant and wearing a waitressing uniform. Her vague status read ‘working for that dough since my baby daddy is useless’ You’d barely looked at all and you were already furious and devastated, you couldn’t even imagine how Cale was feeling. 

Driving home, you called your favorite coworker pleading with her to take what appointments of yours today she could before calling the rest to reschedule. With your work commitments being taken care of, your plan was to go home and change before trying to find Cale. The moment you pulled in your driveway, however, you felt your heart settle because that was definitely Cale’s car. Dialing Laura’s number again you shut your car door quietly, not sure what state you’d find Cale in on the other side of your front door. 

“Hey mom…his car is here. I don’t know what I’m about to find but you know I’ll do everything I can…” Laura insisted that you could call right back if there was anything you needed and after hanging up with her, you slipped your key into the lock, pushing your way inside. 

The house was quiet and after toeing off your shoes, you padded down the hall in search of your boyfriend. The sight that met you as you reached your bedroom door broke your heart. Cale was curled up on your bed, his shoulders shaking with sobs. 

Crawling in beside him, not caring if your dress got rumpled, you pulled his head to your chest, cradling his large frame as best you could. 

“I’m here…I got you.” You whispered, one hand scratching gently over his scalp while the other ran up and down his back. Though Cale buried his head against you, he didn’t react otherwise and you felt his tears gathering against your skin. “What can I do Cale?” You whispered eventually, hating the helpless feeling this situation had left you with. 

The silence of Cale’s response made you swallow hard. You wanted to scream from the rooftops about how people were making false assumptions, how Cale was the victim in this not his ex, how even if they were right it was none of their fucking business in the first place. But you knew it would only make things worse. The only real option was to let things die down on their own. You knew the truth, Cale’s family knew the truth, your family knew the truth, Cale’s teammates knew the truth. What anyone else thought really didn’t matter but that didn’t make it hurt any less. 

When Cale finally cried himself to sleep in your arms, you continued to hold him for a few minutes before you finally pulled yourself from bed. Changing clothes, you grabbed your phone and stepped out to the kitchen for a glass of water, dialing Laura again as you leaned against the kitchen counter. 

“How is he?” She asked immediately. 

“He’s asleep now. Finally cried himself out.” You mumbled. “He hasn’t said a word mom. It’s obvious he’s devastated, but I don’t know what to do. How do I fix this?” 

“You can’t.” She admitted sadly. “Just be there for him. That’s all you can do. It may not feel like much but I’m sure he appreciates it. I appreciate it. I’m glad he’s not alone. That if he didn’t feel comfortable coming home that he felt comfortable enough to go to your home. He’s safe and you can get through this together, we can all get through this together.” 

“Why do people have to be so mean?” You vented, just frustrated with all of it. 

“I can’t answer that. But don’t let this rock your relationship, that would only be giving these people what they want.” She insisted. 

“I’m not going anywhere mom. Cale is stuck with me.” Your words made Laura laugh and you sighed softly. 

“I’m sure he’s so upset about that.” She teased. “My son is absolutely gone for you. I don’t know how I didn’t see it before.” 

“I don’t know mom…” You grinned shaking your head. “Makes me wonder what else he got away with that you don’t know about.” You joked. 

“Not funny Y/N.” She lightly chastised. Taking another sip of water you heard the buzz of a phone that wasn’t yours and you followed the sound, finding Cale’s phone with his keys at the front entry. 

“Hey mom…I’m gonna let you go. I don’t want to leave Cale alone too long even if he’s sleeping.” You said, tucking your phone against your ear as you flipped Cale’s over seeing strings of notifications flash across the screen. 

“Sounds good dear. Love you. Let us know if you need anything.” 

“Will do…love you too mom.” 

You didn’t want to invade Cale’s privacy too much but even a quick glance at his phone told you that his teammates were worried about him. Unlocking his phone with the code you’d memorized just a few days into vacation, you opened his group chat and started typing a message. 

_Hey guys, it’s Y/N…I haven’t read more than the 1 or 2 messages that flashed across the notifications screen because I don’t want to overstep. Just thought you guys should know that Cale really isn’t in a mindset to look at his phone. He’s not ignoring you…I’m sure he’ll get back to you guys soon…he just needs some time to process. If you have any urgent concerns my cell number is (587) 122- 3456._

Before you could talk yourself out of the message, questioning if even that was too intrusive, you pressed send, dropping Cale’s phone back with his car keys. It didn’t take more than a minute for your phone to ring and though you hesitated, answering revealed the voice of Gabe Landeskog. 

“Y/N? This is Gabe.” He greeted. 

“Hey Gabe.” You whispered, moving over toward the couch so that you were a little bit farther away from the open bedroom door. 

“How is he?” The question made you sigh, your head falling back against the couch. 

“Not so good.” You admitted. “He’s asleep right now…hopefully his dreams provide him some peace.” 

“And how are you?” He followed up, not bothering to comment on Cale’s status any further.

“Heartbroken. Angry. Helpless. Take your pick.” You groaned. “There’s nothing I can do but be here and it’s frustrating.” 

“Being there is probably more significant than you realize Y/N. Cale is a very private person and if he trusts you that’s not nothing.” As Gabe spoke you realized that even though you’d told your parents about your relationship, Cale must not have told anyone else yet. 

“I know it’s not. I just…I want to fix it. And I know I can’t. I know we just have to wait and let this die out. But in the meantime I have to watch this tear him apart. It’s hard.” Gabe hummed in acknowledgement, a slightly uncomfortable silence filling the air for a moment before he spoke again. 

“All the guys have his back…your back if you guys need anything. I’ll try and get them to back off a little so he’s not overwhelmed when he’s ready to talk. And I’m sure Cale will appreciate you reaching out to us on his behalf. I know the guys are relieved to know he’s being taken care of.”

“Thanks.” You breathed, still thrown by everything that had happened today. 

“Well I’ll let you go. And Y/N… I’ll have Mel add your number to the Better Halves chat…glad you guys figured it out.” Gabe was just a little too intuitive and you shook your head as you ended the call. 

Cale was still asleep when you crawled back into bed beside him, your hands rubbing soothingly along his skin again. With your brain focused on what you could possibly do to make things better, you missed Cale starting to stir, his blue eyes droopy as he peered over at you. 

“I’m sorry…” The sound of his voice made you jump and when you looked over at him, you saw the distraught expression remained on his face. “I shouldn’t have dragged you into this…” As he spoke he shifted to sit up, his legs swinging over the edge of the bed. Moving alongside him, you wrapped your arms around his shoulders, pulling his body back against yours. 

“You have nothing to be sorry for Cale. You did nothing wrong. This is not on you. This is on the idiots who think they know what they’re talking about when they don’t even have the most basic of their facts straight.” Cale flinched just slightly, but you felt it, your heart picking up speed. 

“I still caused you pain. I’m not supposed to do that.” Something told you that the next words to come out of your mouth were possibly the most important words spoken in your relationship…more important than ‘I love you’ had been. 

“Cale Douglas Makar…” You declared, refusing to let him get up from the bed as you shuffled to stand in front of him. “You listen to me and you listen to me well. You are not the cause of my pain. I hurt because you hurt. The people that hurt you are the ones that hurt me…not you.” Forcing Cale’s cheeks up to look at you, you brushed your thumbs along his jaw. 

“Never apologize for ‘dragging me into’ something. We are partners, we are equals. You cannot carry the emotional burden of this relationship alone. And lately you’ve been doing more work in that regard than you should. So DO NOT apologize. It’s my turn to carry the weight. Let me. Let me support you like you’ve supported me. Let me care for you like you care for me. Maybe I can’t physically carry you out of a lava tube…but I can lift you up emotionally, mentally…I can give you the strength to get through this. You are not alone. You have me. And I’m strong enough to handle this even though it upsets me. Use me. Please. Don’t push me away because you think you have to protect me and handle this on your own.” 

Cale’s tears dripped along your fingertips and you leaned forward pulling his body into yours. 

“We’re gonna get through this Cale…it’ll all blow over. And when it does it’ll just prove to the rest of the world what we already know. That you’re incredible. And we’re unshakable. So whatever you need. I’m here. All you have to do is say the word.” 

“I love you.” Cale’s words were muffled by your clothing, but you heard him loud and clear. 

“I love you too. Always will.” You assured him, nails scraping against his scalp again. Staying like that until his breathing steadied, you dipped down to kiss him gently but deeply. 

“C’mon…let’s order a bunch of junk food, put some stupid comedy on tv and just relax.” You directed. “Though you should probably call mom first. She’s a little concerned and I know hearing your voice would make a big difference.” 

When he nodded, you stepped back, though you didn’t make it far before Cale was wrapped around you again. If he needed to be a koala tonight, you were perfectly okay with that. 

“Do you wanna use my phone so you don’t have to look at yours?” You asked softly. “I did jump into your team group chat to tell the boys to back off a little so you shouldn’t have as many notifications but you can use mine if you aren’t ready to deal with any of that.” 

Cale didn’t seem at all fazed that you had used his phone but he willingly accepted yours, calling his mom. You’d placed an order for food on your laptop while they talked and upon the end of that conversation, you settled in on the couch for the night, only moving for food or drinks. As another episode of the sitcom Cale had picked ended, you looked down at him snoring softly, his head on your chest. 

Today had been exhausting…this week had been exhausting, but you’d dealt with it together and now Cale knew that he didn’t have to bear the weight of the world by himself. You were bound to have bad days every now and then, but together you could get through so much more than either of you could separately. 


	20. Chapter 20

With the last week or so being a strain on both you and Cale emotionally, you knew that you wanted to do something to make him smile now that things were finally looking up. 

Cale’s ex, Sara, must have had a falling out with one of her friends because yesterday a snapchatted image of a paternity test had surfaced online with the comment ‘time for y’all to stop accusing him of being the bad guy when he’s the one that was being cheated on for six months’, proving once and for all that Cale wasn’t the baby’s dad. 

Cale had called you, relief filling his tone. If the story had to be drawn out and his privacy violated for a second time, at least it was in a beneficial way and now that chapter was officially closed. It wasn’t until you got past the emotional hurdles that had been thrown in front of you that you realized July was flying by and soon Cale would be heading back to Denver. This summer was supposed to be about taking advantage of every moment, and lately you’d gotten a little off track. 

Checking with Cale to make sure that he didn’t have any plans for the weekend, you put a call in to a friend from school who was working for a rental agency in BC. Ten minutes later you had confirmation on a lakefront rental for a long weekend and a promise that if you sent her a list, she’d pick up groceries and drop them off for you. It was already mid-week so you threw together a bag, browsing online for more plans for a romantic getaway. 

____

Friday morning you found yourself driving over to the Makar residence to wait for Cale to get home from training. Laura was still home as you let yourself in the open front door and when she saw you she almost immediately jumped up off the chair she was sitting in to hug you. 

“Y/N…I didn’t know you were coming over this morning dear. Can I make you breakfast?” 

“I already ate, but I’d love a cup of tea.” You replied, smiling. “I uh…I came to steal your son for the weekend once he gets home.” 

“Oh really?” She inquired, moving to put water on for tea. “He didn’t mention it.” 

“That’s because it’s a surprise.” You shrugged. “I decided we needed a weekend to unwind from everything. Summer is moving really fast.” Her smile grew and she leaned against the counter, her own mug in her hands. 

“He’s gonna love that.” She murmured. “Seeing the two of you two together just makes me so happy, I hope you know that. This is what I’ve always wanted for him. And for you. The fact that you’ve found it in each other is just a bonus.” 

The front door opened and the sound of shoes hitting the floor of the entryway quickly followed before Cale walked into the kitchen to grab a Gatorade. He was drenched in sweat, his chest on display. 

“Morning mom…” He murmured, retreating almost to the doorway before he realized that his mom wasn’t alone. 

“What are you doing here?” He asked as he closed the distance between you, leaning in for a quick kiss. 

“You’re all sweaty.” You whined, crinkling your nose. Laughing, Cale pretended to move in to hug you before pulling away. “Don’t be a jerk.” You chastised. “Go shower and pack a bag for the weekend Mr.” His eyebrows raised and he eyed you, taking a sip of his drink before opening his mouth to speak.

“Shower first, questions after…you’re stinking up my kitchen Cale.” Laura interrupted Cale’s attempt to question you causing him to roll his eyes. 

“Don’t forget your trunks and like one nicer outfit…the rest can be lazy.” You called, giggling as you heard him racing up the stairs mumbling about the two of you ganging up on him again. 

“The way the two of you can flip from being romantic to the best friends you’ve always been just amazes me.” Laura murmured as she poured your cup of tea. “It seems so natural and I suppose it is.” She clarified more to herself than to you. 

As you watched Laura clean up the kitchen a bit while drinking your tea, a question popped into your head. 

“Hey, mom…do you have any cardboard jewelry gift boxes?” The question made her pause in thought before she held up a finger and disappeared into the garage. When she came back, she tossed a small box to you. 

“Will that work?” She asked, curiosity filling her expression. 

“That’s perfect. Thanks.” You grinned, reaching over to your purse to pull out the key from the front pocket, tucking it away safely in the box. “And before you ask, yes that’s what you think it is, no it’s not for the reason you think.” Laura let out a deep breath and you glanced back at the stairs to make sure that Cale was still occupied. 

“Yes, I’m giving Cale his own house key. But not with the suggestion of moving in together.” You assured her. “I just…after these last couple weeks…I want to be sure that he knows he’s always welcome. I don’t want him to feel like he can only come over in an emergency. I want him to know that if that’s where he wants to be, that that’s where I want him to be. Whether I’m home or not he’s welcome in my home just like he is yours.” Laura’s expression was soft and she moved to hug you again. 

“I’m somewhat relieved…” She whispered. “And it’s not that I’m against the two of you talking about taking that step…I just…” 

“You’re not quite ready for me to steal him completely yet…I understand.” 

“If I were ready for anyone to steal him it would be you…I just…” She admitted. 

“Need more than a week and a half to get used to that idea.” You finished. “We’re not there yet. You’ve got some time.” You promised. 

“Everything good down here?” Cale’s voice appeared out of nowhere and you pulled back from Laura, quickly trying to mask your emotions. 

“Everything is great.” You confirmed, turning to tuck yourself into Cale’s side. “Are you ready to hit the road?” 

“I don’t know what we’re doing…but let’s do it.” Cale agreed, snagging a kiss before hugging his mom goodbye. 

As you headed out the front door with Cale, you missed Laura whisper, “I think I have less time than you realize dear.” 

____

After letting Cale load his bag into the trunk of your car, you climbed behind the wheel, hooking your phone up as gps and for music. 

“I hope you cooled down properly because this is a bit of a drive.” You teasingly warned, glancing over at where Cale had folded himself into your passenger seat. 

Seven hours later, when you finally pulled into the driveway of your destination, Cale’s sarcasm could probably be heard from space. 

“A bit of a drive?” He questioned. “Calgary to Kelowna is more than ‘a bit of a drive.’” 

“Oh hush…like you didn’t sleep half of it.” You threw back, popping the trunk so that you could grab your bag and Cale his. “Now c’mon. We have a little over 48 hours to enjoy alone together in this lakefront paradise.” 

Entering the code to the lock on the front door, you pushed it open, your eyes going wide. Your friend had told you that she knew of the perfect place and boy did she deliver. Beautiful hardwood floors stretched throughout the house and everything felt light and airy and luxurious. Walking through to the second bedroom which was clearly the master, you dropped your bag on the bed eyeing the huge shower on the wall to your right. 

Backtracking back to the kitchen you smiled, first at the modern indoor space, but then your grin grew as you took in the view of the lake out the back windows. It was perfect. Everything about this place was perfect. 

By the time you finished your quick survey, Cale had made his way inside, and you watched as he took it all in. 

“Damn…” He mumbled appreciatively. 

“Yeah. I think this will suit us just fine for a couple days of unwinding.” You agreed, your hand rubbing up over Cale’s back. 

“Don’t know what I did to deserve you.” Cale breathed, arm draped around your waist as he pulled you into a soft kiss. “This is amazing. You’ve seriously been superwoman these last few weeks. Dealing with everything and then you planned this…I’m just…I’m blown away.” 

“I love you.” You stated simply. “We deserve something wonderful after getting past all the bullshit. And a weekend away seemed like a nice escape. We can stay in, we can go exploring, whatever you want. We have a reservation at a winery for dinner tomorrow but other than that the plans are open.” 

“So if I wanted to keep you in bed all weekend?” Cale inquired, mischievous smirk on his face. 

“As long as we don’t miss dinner I’d say it’s a shame we didn’t enjoy the private beach but I’m amenable.” You replied with a shrug. “But maybe we should start with some food tonight…I’m sure you’re hungry.” You suggested, pecking his lips before pulling away to open the fridge. Everything you’d asked for was present and accounted for. 

Pulling the steaks and vegetables from the fridge, along with a bottle of wine, you set about finding everything you needed to make dinner while Cale gaped at you from where you’d left him. 

“There’s food?” The words slipped from his lips, drawing a giggle from your throat. 

“I have people.” You winked, cutting up potatoes, green beans, and carrots. “Want to make yourself useful and go start the grill?” You questioned, reaching for some foil to load the vegetables into along with some oil and seasoning. It wouldn’t take long to grill up dinner and you finished your inside prep before opening the bottle of wine, filling two glasses. 

Passing off the steaks and vegetables to Cale, you stepped out further on the back porch just enjoying the view. It was spectacular, better than perfect and you couldn’t wait to go dip your toes in the water along the sandy beach. 

Dipping back inside for plates and silverware, you settled in at the outdoor table waiting for Cale to finish up at the grill. When the food was done, the two of you settled in to eat. 

“Thanks for manning the grill.” You stated, sipping at your wine. “These steaks came out perfectly.” 

“We make a pretty good team.” Cale agreed, his gaze soft as he looked back and forth between you and the view. Cale’s calf hooked around your leg as you ate and the physical contact made you feel warm and wanted. Once plates were cleared, you sent him to clean the grill while you quickly did the dishes. As you rinsed off the last wine glass, you felt Cale’s arm slide around your waist, pulling you firmly against him. 

He didn’t need to speak a word for you to feel the shift in mood and you leaned back into him, your damp hand sliding up into the hair at the back of his neck. His lips on your ear and then along the column of your throat signaled exactly what he wanted and you let out a pleased hum in response. Dragging you to bed, Cale kept you there for the remainder of the night, his body showing you just how much he appreciated this trip, appreciated you. 

It made you feel even closer to him in every way and it served as the perfect way to prove to yourselves and each other that nothing had managed to shake the bond you’d already formed. You’d had so many different types of sex in the two months you’d been together, but it was this kind you loved the most. The slow, easy, completely unrushed push and pull of your bodies against each other. Cale not giving up until you were a puddle of flesh and bones beneath him. Passing out from exhaustion and pleasure, your naked bodies entwined. 

_______

The sound you woke up to the following morning was not one you’d expected. The sound of rain battering the roof made you shiver, causing you to snuggle further into Cale’s arms. Your movements caused your boyfriend to stir and he nuzzled his nose into your hair. 

“Is that rain?” He mumbled quietly. 

“Certainly sounds like it.” You agreed. 

“Guess I really do get to keep you in bed.” You could feel his smirk against your head and you groaned softly. “But how ‘bout I go make us some breakfast first?” He amended, his body stretching out beside you. 

“I mean I’m not going to argue with that.” You whispered, though the bed was certainly cooler without his presence in it much to your dismay. 

Breakfast in bed with Cale was a first in your relationship, and it felt incredibly romantic to be wrapped in just Cale’s shirt as he fed you bites of pancake and bacon from his spot behind you. 

“We should do this more often.” You breathed, the weight of the world slowly lifting off of your shoulders. 

“Of course sweet girl.” Cale agreed, his hand sliding down along your stomach as he moved the empty plate to the bedside table. You assumed he was going to make good on his implied promise, expecting his fingers to continue their journey down your body. Instead, his hand stayed put and he reached for the remote to turn the tv on, flipping channels. 

Though the show he picked was interesting, you found yourself unable to focus with the occasional kiss dropped onto your neck or shoulder and the mindless strokes of his fingers along your stomach. 

“Cale…” You whimpered his name, your thighs squeezed together to try and alleviate the pressure. 

“Hmm…?” He breathed. 

“Are you gonna touch me or just tease me all day?” You inquired, trying not to squirm against him. 

“Thought you’d be sore and tired after last night…” Cale mused, though his tone gave away that he knew exactly what he was doing. 

“I mean I am…” You admitted. “But that doesn’t mean I don’t want it.” 

“Yeah sweet girl…what is it that you want?” 

“Touch me Cale.” You pleaded, a hiss slipping from your throat as Cale’s teeth scraped along your neck. 

“You gotta be more specific sweetheart. Tell me exactly what you want.” He prodded. This demanding side of Cale was one you hadn’t really seen before and though a part of you wanted to tell him to fuck off and just fuck you, a larger part was curious to see just how far he would take this. 

“Your fingers.” You attempted to clarify, the fog of lust slowly creeping over you. 

“My fingers are touching you sunshine…” He teased, drumming the digits against your stomach. 

“My clit Cale. Fuck please rub my clit.” You hadn’t put underwear on today, so it took hardly any effort for Cale to part your legs enough to slide his fingers exactly where you wanted them. Tossing your head back against his shoulder you arched into his fingers, your body desperate for more. “Cale…faster please.” You whined, frustrated by the slow pace he’d established. 

Although he complied, Cale was sticking strictly to what you asked for, not expanding into all of the other ways he knew to make you fall apart. It was sweet torture. 

“Cale…fuck me please…” You babbled. “I need those long fingers of yours inside me…spreading me open for your cock.” Cale groaned and it appeared he was pleased with you when he asked a direct question instead of vaguely pushing for more. 

“How many fingers do you want sweetheart?” 

“Two…” You quickly gasped out. “…No three.” You corrected. “Give me three please.” 

Spitting on his fingers, Cale worked three inside you, your pussy aching slightly as it stretched around them. 

“Look at how good your pussy takes my fingers.” Cale breathed into your ear, forcing your gaze to drop to where his fingers were pumping in and out of you. “It looks so much better taking my dick. One of these days I’m going to fuck you in front of a mirror so that you can see how well you take me.” Incoherent curses spilled from your lips at his words. When Cale got like this, it took things to another level and tightened that rubber band inside you until it would only take the slightest bit of friction to make it snap. 

Just as you felt your orgasm creeping up, Cale pulled his fingers from you leaving you gasping. 

“Tsk…” Cale chastised when you attempted to rub your legs together. “I don’t think so sweet girl. You need to ask permission to cum. I want you to beg me for your orgasm. You’re getting so greedy wanting to cum before I’m even inside you.” 

“Cale please?” You protested softly. “I’m so close. Please let me cum.” 

“Not yet love. You can wait for it.” Cale’s fingers brushed featherlight touches against your core as your body slipped away from the edge of orgasm. Only then did he fuck his fingers back inside you, bringing you close to the edge before backing off, despite your pleas to let you orgasm. 

Twice more he edged you, making you think he’d let you cum for just a split second before he pulled away. You were shaking, desperate for release. 

“Cale…fuck me please.” You begged. 

“Does my girl want my cock?”

“Fuck Cale…I need it. I need your cock inside me. I need…” You were cut off when Cale practically tossed you to the other side of the bed before shedding his boxer-briefs and climbing over you, sliding into you all the way to the hilt in one smooth thrust. 

“Uuugnnhh…” The strangled sound was all you could vocalize as you clung to Cale, his body stilled inside of you. 

“You’re so tight sweet girl. How are you always so tight no matter how many times I fuck you raw?” Cale started to rock his hips inside of you, quick and deep and you felt your eyes roll toward the back of your head as you panted for breath under him. 

Having been edged 4 times already today, it wasn’t long before you were thrashing under him, your orgasm racing toward you. 

“Ask permission sweetheart.” Cale reminded, his hand sliding between your bodies to rub your clit in time with his thrusts. 

“Cale please…wanna cum…” You gasp, tears spilling down your cheeks from trying to fight off the orgasm your body ached for. 

“Such a good girl. Asking so nicely. Taking my fingers so nicely. Taking my cock so nicely. Go ahead…cum.” 

The second Cale gave you permission, your orgasm crashed down on you, harder than you’d ever felt in your life. The sensation of Cale’s semen spilling inside of you had barely started when you felt everything go black. 

When you stirred, Cale was playing with your hair. 

“There she is.” He whispered softly. “You okay love?” Every inch of your body felt like lead and you craned your neck to see Cale’s satisfied smirk and concerned eyes. 

“You did not just make me cum so hard I blacked out…” You mumbled in disbelief. 

“Pretty sure I did.” Cale replied. “You’ve never cum that hard around me before. Was the sexiest thing ever.” He gloated. “It still sounds like it’s pouring so why don’t you take a nap before getting ready for dinner.” 

Yawning, you rolled to bury your head into Cale’s chest, still in disbelief about the orgasm he’d just given you.


	21. Chapter 21

It had to be a couple hours later when Cale woke you up again, shifting out from under you. By the time you were actually awake, he was washing his hands and you assumed he’d needed to use the bathroom. Catching you watching his nude figure from across the room in the mirror, he smiled that bright smile you love so much. 

“My beautiful girl is up.” He commented, drying his hands off. “It’s about 3:30…I don’t know what time you made the reservation for but we should probably think about showering at least.” Nodding you pushed yourself upright. 

“Can you get me some water?” You requested, your mouth feeling dry from everything that had happened before your nap. 

“Sure thing sweetheart.” Cale agreed, heading out to the kitchen to bring you back a glass of water. Having downed the glass, you shoved the covers aside, moving to turn the massive shower on. Cale was right behind you as you climbed in and you felt his lips trail down your shoulder as you stepped under the water. 

Though the two of you attempted to focus on cleaning yourselves and each other up, your shower quickly turned into a steamy makeout session. A clash of tongue and teeth was accompanied by wandering hands: yours over Cale’s arms and chest, his down your sides and over your ass. Losing yourself in the kiss, you felt a spark run up your spine at the sound of Cale’s moan, his dick growing hard against your stomach. 

“You get hard for me so easily don’t you handsome.” You murmured against his lips. “I love that just kissing me turns you on.” Sliding your hand down further, you teased your fingertips over his length until he grunted into the kiss. 

“Y/N.” He mumbled, his eyes dark. 

“Shh…let me…” You insisted, forcing him to step back until he was pressed against the shower wall. “I caused this so let me take care of it.” You continued, pressing light kisses along his collarbone as you wrapped your hand around his cock. Silky skin covered his hard erection and as you teased over him with your fingers before pumping him in your hand, you could feel every little twitch and jolt of his body. There was something so freeing about being in control of his pleasure, knowing that it was your actions that made him feel good. 

It wasn’t long before Cale’s head fell back against the shower wall, his hand gripping tightly at your hip. 

“That’s it handsome…cum for me. Cum all over me.” Cale’s eyes jolted open at your last statement as his cock twitched in your hand, his ejaculate shooting out to coat your chest and stomach. “Oooo. That excited you.” You teased, gently releasing him as he went soft. “We’re gonna have to remember that.” You grinned, stretching to kiss him again, not caring that his semen was being spread onto his skin. 

“It’s the best of both fucking worlds with you.” Cale groaned, still recovering from his latest orgasm. “Mom loves you and the sex is insane.” Shaking your head, you laughed, pulling Cale back under the water to wash off one more time. 

“Alright Mr. Makar…time to behave. I demand to be wined and dined tonight so you have to let me get ready.” Stepping out of the shower, you wrapped yourself in a towel, drying off your hair with a second. Pulling out the blow dryer to speed up the drying process, you then switched to doing your makeup. Cale dried off and got dressed while you were working on your eyeliner before disappearing into another part of the house. 

Slipping into the navy fabric of your dress when you were finally finished with both your hair and makeup, you called Cale. 

“Can you help me zip this?” You requested, a shiver running up your spine as Cale’s fingers drug over your back lightly, the zipper following. “Thanks hun.” You murmured, bending over the bed to grab your sandals from your bag. It wasn’t until you had dropped them to the floor to slide onto your feet that you looked over at Cale, his jaw dropped. 

“You’re so beautiful.” He whispered, his cheeks pink as he praised you. 

“Thanks handsome.” You replied, grazing your lips over his before pulling back. “Are you ready to go?” You asked, looking at the clock to see that somehow you’d managed to be right on time to make it to your reservations. 

“Let me look at you for just a minute.” Cale replied, his hand reaching forward to slowly twirl you around. Spinning, his eyes raked over you with so much affection that it caused the heat to rise in your cheeks. 

“C’mon…let’s go…” You pushed, smoothing your hands down along his chest before grabbing your phone and purse. As you headed out the front door you were relieved to find that the rain was just a drizzle. Still, you tossed your keys to Cale, preferring not having to drive in these particular shoes. Putting the address of the winery into the gps, it didn’t take long for Cale to drive across town, throwing the car in park after pulling into a parking spot. 

Even though you had a reservation, the waitstaff needed just a few minutes to clear off a table. Leaning against the flagstone siding outside the restaurant, you looked off into the distance, admiring the countryside. Lost in thought about how wonderful it was to share these experiences with Cale: traveling, trying new restaurants, just dating like any other couple, you jumped when your phone buzzed in your purse. 

Seeing Cale on his phone as well, you felt less guilty looking at it and when you pulled your phone out you saw that it had been a notification from instagram signaling that you’d been tagged in a story…Cale’s story. Clicking on it, your jaw dropped seeing the picture of you, a picture Cale must have literally just taken. In the bottom left corner was a heart, while the bottom right contained your profile tag and the simple caption ‘dinner date with my girl’. 

As your heart started to pound, the hostess called your name and you quickly dropped your phone back into your purse, following after her with Cale’s hand slipping to your lower back as he walked behind you.

When you reached the table, you thanked the young woman before settling in and picking up your menu to decide on which of the starters, entrees, and desserts you wanted for your three course meal. It was at least a momentary distraction from the way your pulse was thrumming. 

“So we’re public public now…” The words spilled out suddenly. Cale’s eyes jolted up from his menu and he eyed you for a moment before a content grin spread across his face. 

“Yeah sweetheart. I’m done hiding you.” Somehow, the feeling of panic that had been growing shrunk instantly at his words. 

“Okay.” You nodded, sipping at your glass of water. You knew that there were going to be people who were rude or inconsiderate but Cale was right, that was no reason to hide. If your mother’s disapproval and paternity rumors couldn’t shake you, nothing anyone could say now would either. Cale was a very private person and the fact that he’d finally shared you only signaled just how deeply committed he was to this, to you. 

During dinner you talked about Cale’s training stories, some of the outrageous couples you’d been dealing with recently and when his phone started to buzz incessantly with texts, you made him read some of the team’s responses to his story to you, laughing at the way the guys chirped him. 

By the time you’d finished dinner, snatching the check before Cale could even think about paying it, you were full and happy. It wasn’t often that you actually went out with Cale, but each time you did you truly enjoyed yourself and the change of pace a night out provided to your normal routines. Having taken your time with dinner, by the time you left the restaurant it was nearly dark. 

Slipping back into the car, you watched the sky open up into a downpour the moment you closed the door. It hadn’t let up on the way back to the rental home and the moment you stepped out of the car you were immediately drenched. 

The grownup part of you nearly made a dash straight to the front door eager to get inside. But there was another part that took a different path, ditching your purse with your phone in the covered doorway. 

“Leave your phone, wallet, and the keys here. Then c’mon.” You directed your boyfriend, moving around the house to the large yard. The rain felt incredible on your skin, no signs of lightning or thunder present in the sky. Cale had looked at you like you were crazy, but eventually he’d followed, having also shed his dress shoes and socks.

“What are you doing?” He inquired, pushing some wet hair out of your face. 

“We’re already drenched, we might as well enjoy the rain.” You proclaimed, wrapping your arms around him. “In fact. I know exactly what we should do.” You added, tugging him out toward the lake. The houses on either side of yours were quiet and dark, no one in sight. Feeling bold, you reached up to undo the buttons of Cale’s shirt, your hands sliding along his skin. 

“Are you crazy?” Cale asked, his eyes going wide and cheeks flushing deeply. 

“There’s no one around.” You declared, reaching for the zipper to your dress. “Come skinny dipping with me.” It only took a moment to shed your dress and undergarments, kicking your sandals off of your feet. This was a little daring, but any hesitation you normally would have had was buried by the confidence two glasses of wine gave you and the way you and Cale were constantly pushing boundaries. 

The water of the lake was cool as you waded in, shielding yourself in its depths. Between the water and the dark rainy night, there was no way anyone could see you. You watched Cale’s shadowy figure as he clearly debated with himself for a moment before his shirt hit the ground followed by his pants and boxer-briefs. Once he made it out to you in the water, you swam close enough that you could actually see him, splashing him slightly in the process. 

“You’re gonna be the death of me…you know that sweetheart.” Cale mumbled. 

“Live a little.” You simply replied, your body moving fluidly under the water. Besides your state of undress, you felt just like a little kid again, playing in the rain in the little pool in the Makar’s backyard. “Just because we’re grownups doesn’t mean we can’t act like kids sometimes.” You reminded him. 

Because it was night, you didn’t wander too far from Cale, yet you still jumped when one of Cale’s hands wrapped around your waist, pulling you toward him. 

“I love how you always find ways to make life an adventure. You keep me on my toes.” He murmured, stealing a kiss as your legs wrapped loosely around his waist, his body keeping both of you afloat. 

“Life without adventure isn’t really life at all now is it?” You posed, your hands sliding up and around his neck again. “And now you have another thing you can check off your list.” You added, your voice turning teasing. 

“Hmm…mom has always thought you were a good influence on me. If only she knew the truth.” Cale teased right back, his hands grazing over a spot on your back that was unusually sensitive to his touch. 

For the next few minutes, you seemed to be playing the game of who could get the other to give into the sexual tension first, neither of you willing to bend. Inevitably, it wasn’t an action by either of you. As rain continued to pour over you, a crack of thunder sounded out of nowhere, sending you bolting out of the lake immediately. 

Grabbing your things, you rushed up to the house, entering the code on the back door simply because it was closer. You’d planned to grab a towel, dry off, and then dip around front to grab your things from outside but you’d barely reached the kitchen island when Cale’s large frame was behind you, his hands gently causing you to drop the wet clothing onto the floor as he pressed you against the granite countertop. 

“Cale…our things.” You gasped, Cale’s fingers dipping intimately low on your stomach. 

“Already put them just inside the front door.” Cale stated. “Now bend over for me. Gonna fuck you for being such a tease.” 

Absent the time in the car when you’d kind of rode Cale, he’d never taken you from behind before and the realization caused you to bend willingly for him, curious as to how it would be different. 

There was no pause in Cale’s actions as he pressed you firmly against the counter, swiped his thumb through your core testing your wetness, and lined himself up before thrusting deep inside of you. 

This was at least your 4th round of penetrative sex in about 24 hours and though you were sore, it created that pleasure/pain sensation that was just on the right side of good. Your body slammed against the counter with each thrust, and with Cale’s cock hitting your g-spot with efficiency, you knew it wouldn’t take long before your orgasm crashed down on you. 

“So good sweetheart.” Cale whispered as his hand swept your wet hair off of your neck. “Checking so many things off our list today aren’t we.” He suggested. “Rub your clit for me…” 

“I’m not the only bad influence.” You gasped, your hand sneaking down to rub quick circles over your swollen bundle of nerves. 

“Who…me? A bad influence…never.” Cale said, his voice mostly coming out in a grunt. 

“Fuck…” You whined, Cale hitting a particularly sensitive spot inside of you. “Yeah uh huh…keep believing that hun…” You stuttered, your head dropping down onto the countertop as you arched your hips back against Cale. “Last I checked, I wasn’t the one who made you pull over while driving to have sex because of an item of clothing. Or the one who decided to engage in foreplay while 2 feet from our families. You’re not so innocent Calesy.” 

“Didn’t hear you complaining.” Cale groaned, his thrusts starting to become staggered as his orgasm approached. 

“Not complaining. You know I love it when you fuck me.” You gasped. “Just saying…if I’m a bad influence so are you.” 

“For something bad…it feels so good.” Cale mumbled, spilling inside of you, his hips keeping as much of a pace as he could even through his own orgasm until he felt you clamp down around him as your orgasm crested. 

With him still nestled inside you, Cale’s hands ran over your back in soothing patterns until your body and breath steadied. 

“This is gonna be messy, but I’ve gotta pull out sweetheart. Are you good to get yourself to the bathroom while I take these clothes to hang in the other bathroom to dry?” Nodding weakly, you felt Cale’s semen start dripping down your thighs as soon as he slipped out of you. Moving as quickly as you could to the bathroom, you peed and cleaned yourself up as best you could before grabbing a towel to dry the rest of your still wet body off. 

Cale had done at least a little damage control by the time you hung the towel back up, and before you could move to grab pajamas, he was offering you a clean t-shirt to pull on before pulling you between his thighs as he sat on the bed. 

“Was that okay?” He questioned, thumbs grazing lightly back and forth across your hips. “I know we hadn’t done that before.” 

“Yeah hun…that was good.” You assured him, fingers carding through his wet hair. “You’ve yet to do anything that hasn’t made me feel good.” You elaborated. “I like trying all of these new things with you. I like that no matter how many times we have sex, something is always new or different. You always focus on taking care of me…I’ve never had a partner who was so generous every single time. Granted my experience before you was pretty limited but still. Not to be crude but we just fit together perfectly. I hope it’s as good for you as it is for me.” 

“It is.” Cale agreed. “Just checking.” He shrugged. 

“I promise I’ll tell you if you ever do something I don’t like okay. You don’t need to worry about it. I like making love to you. I like fucking you. I like experiencing every level of closeness that I can with you. I like showing you how much I love you through that type of physical relationship. Because I do love you. So so much.” 

“I love you too.” Cale smiled softly. 

“Now can I have some post sex cuddles?” You requested, straddling his boxer-brief laiden lap. 

Cale chuckled and fell back onto the bed, with you on top of him, quickly twisting the two of you around so that you were more comfortable to cuddle. 

“You can always have cuddles.” He whispered, his lips pressed against your head. Basking in the feeling of Cale’s heart beating under your ear, you almost fell asleep until the little gift box in your purse popped back into your head. You hadn’t had a specific plan for giving it to him, but for some reason you felt like maybe now was the right time. 

Cale was obviously still awake by the way his fingers kept changing up the pattern along your spine and when you shifted he groaned, his eyes fluttering open to look at you as you pushed yourself up off the bed. 

“Where are you going?” He questioned. 

“I’ll be right back.” You assured him, padding out of the room to find your purse sitting in the living room. Checking your phone to make sure you hadn’t missed anything urgent, you grabbed the small gift box and returned, hiding it in your hand as you slid back into bed. 

Cale’s eyes slid shut again as you snuggled against him, but they popped back open when you placed the small box on his bare chest. 

“What’s this?” His voice was full of confusion and you rubbed your thumb over the crease of his forehead as it crinkled. 

“A present obviously.” You stated. “And before you say that I didn’t have to get you a present or that it’s not any important date, it’s more of a sentimental gift and I wanted to do it just because.” You informed him, slightly anxious as to what he was going to think. 

Shifting to let him sit up just slightly, you watched as he pulled the lid off the box, slowly pulling out the key. 

“Is this?” He whispered his face showing clear signs that he was processing. 

“A key to my house. Yes.” You confirmed. “More specifically…it’s _your_ key to my house. Not an emergency key.” Taking a deep breath you continued wanting Cale to fully understand. “So you can come and go as you please. So that when you need some place to escape to, you know you’re always welcome. Whether I’m there or not.” Cale’s gaze was soft and you swallowed hoping he understood.

“Someday it’ll mean more but hopefully that makes sense.” You finished, your voice dropping. 

Instead of responding verbally, Cale dropped his mouth to yours in the sweetest, most tender kiss you could recall having ever shared. 

“It makes perfect sense.” He finally agreed. “You’re incredible. Thank you. You may think it’s a small gesture but it means so much more than you know.” 

This time, when you settled back against his chest, sleep started creeping up on you quickly. Still, the way he brushed his fingers against your left ring finger didn’t go unnoticed, a silent sign that he also was thinking about what someday would bring. 

**Dress:**

  



	22. Chapter 22

Summer rain seemed to be following you lately. Though the second day of your romantic weekend in B.C. had been sunny and filled with you and Cale just relaxing, playing, and enjoying the lake, as he drove back to Calgary, the skies had opened once more. 

Since then it had rained on and off for more than a week. When you’d gone to work this morning, the skies had been cloudy and by mid-morning the storms had returned causing your office to lose power. Working in the dark clearly wasn’t an option, so you’d packed up and headed home, planning on trying to get some work done there, though management wasn’t expecting much from anyone considering the outage. 

Pulling into the driveway, you immediately noticed that Cale’s car was here. Entering the house, you couldn’t hear anything and instead of going in search of Cale right away, you moved into your bedroom to change into more comfortable clothing. As you stepped through your bedroom doorway, your heart immediately jumped into your throat. There, on the wall above your bed, were three canvases with pictures of you and Cale from your trip to Iceland. Tears pricked in your eyes and the love you felt for him swirled wildly in your stomach. This was something you’d wanted to do but just hadn’t gotten around to and now…here they were. It was everything you had imagined it would be and then some. 

One photo was of your kiss right after you’d realized you love him, another was from the canyon that had made you cry, and the third was from the hot springs at the hotel toward the very end of the trip. You could feel the love radiating from each of them, perfect reminders of just how wonderful Iceland was and how much you love that man that is somewhere in your house. 

Going in search of him after changing into some yoga pants and a tank, you didn’t find him until you heard grunts and thuds coming from the basement. At the bottom of the steps you found Cale working out, using the massive empty indoor space to train. With your presence going unnoticed, you watched him for a few minutes, sweat dripping down his body as he did some extreme burpees. It wasn’t until he finished his set leaning heavily against his thighs that you dared move and you stumbled over the last stair, too focused on the way the muscles of his back were rippling as he heaved. 

The sound of your stumble drew Cale’s attention and immediately his eyes lit up as a grin spread across his face. 

“I’ll take a power outage every day if this is what I get to come home to.” You joked, pulling your lip between your teeth as you raked your eyes up and down his body. 

“I was just going to cool down with some yoga, want to join me?” Cale asked, his tongue poking out to wet his own lips. 

“Let me go grab water.” You agreed, jogging back up the steps to the kitchen before grabbing two bottles and heading back downstairs. 

The last time you had done yoga was in college so this was definitely going to be interesting, but it was time spent with Cale and you could never turn that down. Turns out, he’s a pretty good teacher, and you were able to follow along with everything he was doing fairly easily, relaxing into each pose and enjoying the stretch of your muscles. At the same time though, your brain couldn’t help but focus on the sweat dripping down his skin, the way his muscles flexed, how strong he looked working out. After a while, you weren’t sure whether it was the yoga or Cale that had you feeling like you needed to kick the AC up, your body hot all over. 

It seemed like Cale was affected as well because he kept losing focus, his gaze locked on your ass every time you looked over at him. Though it was clear he was finished, you settled yourself onto the floor, arching your back as best you could before laying flat, stretching out lazily like a cat. You’d forgotten how much you missed yoga, and you gazed up at your boyfriend, a relaxed grin on your face despite the want that had pooled low in your belly. 

It only took a minute before Cale was offering a hand out to you, quickly pulling you to your feet, one leg draping up and over his hip allowing you to feel his hard length against your core. Rolling your hips down against his, you drew a growl from his throat before he dropped you onto both feet. 

“You’re too fucking distracting.” Cale mumbled, his hands settling low on your hips. 

“Maybe you’re just easily distracted.” You shot back, your own hands teasing lightly over his sweaty chest. 

Cale shot you a dark look before suddenly you were pinned back against the wall, your body held firmly in place by Cale’s as he lifted your arms up over your head. 

“Don’t play sweetheart.” He whispered, voice low. 

“Just fuck me already.” You teased. “You know we both want it.” Quick tugs of fabric had your clothes falling to the floor alongside Cale’s as his lips dragged up and over your now bare skin. 

“You always want it.” Cale smirked, hauling you back up his body until your legs were wrapped around his hips as he held you against the wall. 

“Don’t act like that’s a problem.” You murmured, your head falling back against the wall as Cale ground against you. “Right now the only problem we have is that you’re not inside me yet.” 

“I can fix that.” Cale insisted, juggling you in his arms just slightly as he positioned himself, before pressing inside you slowly. There was nothing you loved more than that first initial sense of fullness that came with sex, your body stretching around Cale’s length as it drug along your inner walls. 

The first stroke was the only thing that was slow. The sex that followed was quick and needy, a show of Cale’s sheer strength as he fucked you against the wall. With sweat still glistening on his body, you watched as his biceps flexed with the effort of holding you up, how his abs clenched with each thrust inside of you. 

It wasn’t like you didn’t know your boyfriend was a pro athlete, but it was moments like this that you couldn’t stop thinking about it, the obviousness of his prowess and physical ability at the forefront. 

Working your body against his, it wasn’t long until your toes were curling as a sharp orgasm crashed down over you like a freight train. Cale didn’t even pause as he lowered both of you to the carpeted basement floor, continuing to thrust inside of you. It felt like there was a part of him determined to show you just how good his stamina was because you felt yourself getting close to a second orgasm and Cale’s pace hadn’t changed at all like it normally did when he was close. 

Crying out, your nails dug into Cale’s shoulder blades as you gave in to your second climax. It wasn’t until you had started to come down from the high, that you felt Cale stutter a bit in his movements. 

Pulling him into a kiss, you let your hands slip down to the sensitive skin of his lower back. It was the teasing patterns you left there that caused Cale to spill inside you, his body going rigid and then pliant with his orgasm. Draped halfway on top of you, Cale finally stilled, his breath heaving just like it had been when you first saw him today. 

“Fuck.” He mumbled against your shoulder, voice strained. 

“Yeah.” You agreed, giggling softly as you kissed his temple. 

Eventually you convinced Cale to get up so the two of you could shower, an activity which was filled with far gentler touches as you ran soapy hands over his skin, the water washing away all the bodily fluids of the morning. 

It wasn’t until you were both dressed, hanging out in the kitchen while you scrounged up some lunch that Cale brought up a topic you’d known was coming but dreaded thinking about. 

“So uh…I got a reminder text about the Bauer Camp…I have to leave this weekend.” 

“Where’s this one at?” You murmured, grateful to be occupied with a task that would let you gather your emotions before you had to look at him. 

“New Hampshire.” Cale replied. “It’s just a ten day camp. I’ll leave on the 9th, camp starts the 10th and I’ll be back late on the 19th.” 

Ten days. You told yourself that was doable as you settled into a chair across from him at the kitchen table. 

“I’m sure you’ll have a blast.” You assured him. Deep down though you knew that this was the point where everything changed. 

______

Cale had spent the night before leaving for camp with you, curled up on the couch with a movie before crawling into your bed, his arms wrapped snugly around you. You’d driven him to the airport the following morning, kissing him as you whispered your ‘see you soons’. 

The first few days he was away, you focused on keeping yourself busy. If you were busy then you wouldn’t have time to miss him right? You still texted and on day three he’d facetimed, talking with you about everything that was going on. He looked tired in the same way you felt tired, but you refused to let him know that the distance was having any effect on you. 

It wasn’t until the fifth day that his absence really hit hard. Not only did this match the longest you’d been apart since you got together, it was your three month anniversary. Flowers had been delivered to your office just before lunch and you’d struggled to keep yourself together for the rest of the day, the light floral aroma causing tears to prick at your eyes. Cale had sent a beautiful arrangement with sunflowers and white roses and though you knew this wasn’t going to be the last anniversary he missed, it bothered you all the same. 

Heading home, you’d planned on taking a long hot shower before crawling into bed. Instead, you opened your front door to find white rose petals trailing into your kitchen. There you found a bottle of wine chilling in an ice bath and a container of cupcakes sitting on your table alongside a wrapped present with ‘open me’ on the tag. 

Carefully tearing into the paper revealed a stack of three historical non-fiction books on a couple of your favorite topics. Tucked into the front cover of the top book was a note.

_Sweetheart,_

_You don’t know how badly I wish I could be there to celebrate three months together. I know none of this really makes up for it but hopefully it’ll bring a smile to your face. And don’t think I only got you books for our anniversary…your real present is coming, I just wanted to give it to you in person._

_Before you yell at me saying I’ve already done too much, you should remember that being with you is the only gift I need. You make every day better and you’ve done more for me than a million tiny gestures could ever make up for. You deserve all of this and I want to give it all to you._

_I love you and I can’t wait to come home to you._

_Cale_

_P.S. Please text me so I know that Taylor didn’t fuck this up._

Cale’s note had you crying until you read the postscript and a bubble of laughter spilled from your throat. Pouring yourself a glass of wine, you grabbed a cupcake and padded out to the couch, your phone in hand. It was late and even later on the east coast, but you still dialed Cale’s number hoping that he would pick up the call. 

After a minute, his face came onto your screen revealing him lying on a hotel bed, fatigue all over his face. 

“Hey beautiful.” He greeted, shifting to sit up a bit more. 

“No Taylor didn’t fuck up. It was a really nice surprise to come home to.” You spilled out immediately. “Too much but really nice.” Cale’s sleepy chuckle caused your chest to ache and you took another sip of wine, trying to drown that feeling out. 

“Sweetheart, I’d give you the moon and all the stars if I could…you know that.” He replied. “Some flowers, wine, and dessert seemed like the least I could do. Did you have a good day?” 

You talked with Cale until it was clear he could barely keep his eyes open and as you hung up the pit in your stomach grew. 

How were you going to make it through a whole season apart? 

You knew it wasn’t impossible, but it certainly wouldn’t be easy. And as you progressed through the weekend and into the next week it was all you could think about. 

There was one thing you were certain of: no matter how hard it was going to be, you weren’t going to force yourself on him by moving to Denver. Sara had done that and you refused to repeat the pattern of his relationship with her in any way. You moving now or at any point was entirely in Cale’s court, it was his decision to make with no pressure from you. 

No matter how much the thought of being apart from him hurt. 

_________

Though you didn’t know it, you weren’t the only one the distance was affecting. While he loved the opportunities the summer camps provided, Cale’s heart wasn’t fully in this one and it quickly became obvious to everyone around him. 

The first few days weren’t too bad, Cale’s focus was high and he seemed to be enjoying time spent with the other Bauer athletes. Still, his smile was only at its brightest when his head was buried in his phone and by the third day he was already dipping out on evening activities to head back to his hotel room alone. 

The fifth day of camp, Cale’s mood took a sharp turn for the worse. His physicality was a touch too high for a summer camp and though he participated fully in all of the on-ice exercises, the expression on his face was one of complete disinterest. 

“Usually I’m the one filled with existential dread…what is wrong with you?” Quinn Hughes commented, his tone joking as he skated over to Cale’s side in the middle of a defensive drill. 

“Nothing. I’m fine.” Cale snapped, completely ignoring the Canucks defenseman’s concerned expression. 

At dinner that night, Cale mostly just pushed his food around his plate, drawing the attention of Steven Stamkos. 

“Hey Makar…ride with me back to the hotel.” Steven insisted. Since most of the younger guys were pushing him to go out to a bar with them given it was Friday night, Cale didn’t argue with the excuse to slip away. Once they were alone, Steven pressed for information from the young defenseman. 

“What’s going on with you?” Steven asked. “And don’t tell me nothing because your mood is getting fouler by the day and it’s clear that your head isn’t here.” 

“It’s our 3 month anniversary today.” Cale mumbled. 

“I’d say it gets easier…but that would be a lie.” Steven declared as he paid the cabbie, the car having pulled up to the hotel. “Your girl in Calgary?” He asked. 

“Yeah, she’s a real estate agent back home. My best friend since…well my whole life.” The way Cale’s expression softened spoke volumes to Steven. He knew that look well. It was one of a man who was in deep. “This is the longest I’ve gone without seeing her since we started dating.” 

“Dude…I’m not going to tell you that you can’t miss her. I miss my wife like crazy when we’re apart. But this funk you’re in isn’t going to do you any good.” 

“I know.” Cale mumbled, fingers running through his hair. 

“And I mean if you can’t handle a 10 day summer camp, how are you going to handle an entire season apart? Something to think about.” Steven declared, patting Cale on the shoulder before he headed inside and up to his room, leaving the former rookie standing out on the sidewalk, his head spinning. 

How _was_ he going to handle the season without you? Soon he’d be heading back to Denver and then who knows when he’d get the chance to see you. It could be Christmas unless the schedule put them in Calgary sooner. Even if it did, he’d likely only get a couple hours with you. It just wouldn’t be enough time. 

He’d been so focused on enjoying the summer, making the most of what time you did have, that he’d completely forgotten that that time was quickly coming to an end. As he fell into bed in his empty hotel room, his stomach twisted at the thought. 

Though he was barely sleeping, Cale was more cognizant of the fact that everyone around him could see he wasn’t himself and he did his best to hide everything he was feeling. 

By the end of the 9th day of camp, he returned to his hotel room and just flopped onto bed. 24 hours. He only had to make it another 24 hours and then he’d be back in Calgary. Still, the thought of having to leave you in September weighed heavily on his mind and when his phone rang repeatedly, his mom’s name flashing across the screen, he groaned ignoring it for the moment. 

Soon after, Taylor’s name flashed across the screen, a text reading _stop being a jerk and ignoring mom_ causing Cale to groan. Dialing Taylor’s number, Cale put his phone on speaker, his hands rubbing over his face. 

“Bro what’s going on?” Taylor greeted. “It’s not like you to ignore mom.” 

“I just…I can’t deal with her right now okay.” Cale breathed out heavily. “I’ve got a lot on my mind.” 

“You mean a certain girlfriend of yours?” Taylor suggested. “The distance is killing you… isn’t it?” 

“Fuck. Yeah.” Cale admitted. “I may be physically here but I swear half of my head is still back in Calgary. I don’t…I don’t fucking know what I’m going to do.” 

“That’s stupidly easy Bro.” Taylor insisted. “Ask Y/N to move to Denver. You know that’s all you have to do. It’s literally that easy.” 

“But…” Cale started and then stopped, allowing his brother the chance to jump back in.

“No buts. You know if you ask she’ll move in a heartbeat. But she’ll never bring it up herself because she doesn’t want to force that choice on you like your ex did.” 

“But I can’t ask that from her…” Cale sighed, rubbing his face again. 

“Yeah you can. Do you really think that she would ever say her job or her life in Calgary means more than being with you fully? She may be practically my big sister, but there’s always been something more between the two of you. Shit bro…she bought a house with you in mind. Yeah she’s got her own things, but her life has always revolved around you. This isn’t something new.” Taylor’s words made the wheels of Cale’s brain turn. 

“Do you really think she’s not feeling the same way you are? Shit Cale, you asked me to drop those things off last week and let me tell you it was pretty obvious that she’s missing you too. I guarantee you she’s just as worried about the distance as you are but again…she won’t do anything about it. You know she’s always put everyone else, especially you, in front of her own needs.” 

“I…” Cale let out a heavy sigh. 

“Cale, I know I’m the younger brother but I have literally watched the two of you slowly find your home in each other over the last 18 years. Ask her to move to Denver. Neither of you will be happy unless you do. So don’t fuck this up. You know I’m right.” 

“She’s already done so much…” Cale sighed, still weighing Taylor’s suggestion in his mind. 

“Look. I can’t make you ask her. But anyone that has seen the two of you together knows that it’s not going to be long before you’re putting a ring on her finger. And the Avs aren’t planning on letting you play for any other team probably for your whole career so the fact of the matter is, unless you two are going to only be together three months every summer, she’s gonna end up in Denver with you eventually. I know this, mom knows this, you know this, and she knows this. She knows this and she’s still with you. Yeah she may not have expected it this soon but I’m telling you that if you ask her, she’ll say yes. And then none of us will have to listen to the two of you whine about how much you miss each other. So just bite the bullet and do it will you…for all of our sanities.” 

When Cale didn’t respond, Taylor shook his head before switching topics. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow dude. I’m picking you up from the airport. You can tell me then whether we’re going home or whether you’re dropping me off at Dan’s before going to Y/N’s.” 

The second Taylor hung up the phone, he was fairly certain he already knew what Cale’s choice was going to be. 

**Anniversary Flowers:**


	23. Chapter 23

You knew you should be happy…you should be dancing with joy in fact. Today had been Cale’s final day of camp and he was on his way home. You’d be able to see him tomorrow after work. 

Yet for some reason, you couldn’t keep the tears from falling. Maybe you were officially losing your mind, maybe your hormones were in flux, but no matter how hard you tried, you couldn’t stop crying. The moment you climbed in your car after work they’d started and hadn’t let up even as you made yourself dinner. Now you were standing at your kitchen sink, trying to wash the dishes that had piled up over the last week, soft but sad love songs streaming from your phone as your body shook with sobs. 

You were so lost in your mental ramblings about how things were going to be different after this trip with Cale leaving in less than a month, that you missed the sound of a car in your driveway, missed the sound of a key in the lock of your front door, missed the sound of footsteps approaching from down the hall. 

You missed every sign of Cale’s presence until in the blink of an eye, a pair of lips brushed against the back of your neck and a hand flew forward to catch the slippery wine glass from your fingers before you had the chance to drop it into the sink shattering it. 

Just as quickly, Cale was turning the water off, reaching for a towel to dry your hands before spinning you into his chest, his hand cupping the back of your head. 

“Sunshine…why are you crying?” His smooth voice whispered in your ear. As your brain finally started to process Cale’s presence, another round of sobs spilled forth and you wrapped your arms around his waist tightly. “Sweetheart…come on…there’s no reason for the waterworks.” He pressed. “I need you to calm down because I have an important question for you.” 

Slowly, the rhythm of his breathing helped steady you, though you still clung to him tightly. 

“I missed you sweet girl.” He murmured, his hand cupping your jaw so that he could pull your mouth up for a kiss. “And I’m hoping these tears are a sign that you missed me too.” A weak nod made him sigh and he kissed you again, stealing all of the breath from your lungs. 

“Listen…” Cale breathed, drawing your attention to the fact that a new song had shuffled its way into your playlist. 

**_I swear to God, when I come home_ **

**_I’m gonna hold you so close_ **

**_I swear to God, when I come home_ **

**_I’ll never let go_ **

His arms shifted around you as he started swaying you back and forth right in the middle of your kitchen floor. 

**_And I’m not scared to say those words with you, I’m safe_ **

The lyrics meant so much more, falling from Cale’s lips. If it weren’t for the wet patches of Cale’s shirt pressing against your cheek you would have been certain that this was all just a dream you’d created in your mind. 

**_I swear to God, I can see_ **

**_Four kids and no sleep_ **

**_We’ll have one on each knee, you and me_ **

With Cale’s nose brushing against your head and his thumb running across your lower stomach your knees nearly buckled. Flashes of that appeared in your mind, causing your breath to come out in shaky bursts. 

**_Oh, I’m in love_ **

**_Oh, I’m in love_ **

**_Oh, I’m in love_ **

**_Oh, I’m in love_ **

If someone would have told you that on a random Wednesday evening in August you’d find _your song_ you never would have believed them. But wrapped in Cale’s arms, you couldn’t imagine any other song out there making you feel the way you did right now. 

As the song ended, Cale tilted your head up, his lips kissing away the tears. 

“I’m gonna ask you that question now.” He prefaced. “Come with me to Denver? Move in with me? Build a life with me there? I can’t…I don’t want to do this without you.” 

“Cale…” You whispered, shock filling your system at his words. You’d been so certain that he wasn’t ready for that, that you’d be spending the season apart. 

“Please say yes.” He pleaded, his eyes swirling with a dozen emotions. Reading his gaze you could see the determination, the want, the fear that you’d say no. 

“Yes.” You agreed, no hesitation despite the million details it would require you to work out. “Yes.” Cale’s arms swept you off of your feet as he spun you around, his head dipping to bury in your neck. 

“You said yes.” He muttered to himself as he set you back on your feet. “Holy shit you said yes.” The amount of love you felt radiating from his body was the only assurance you needed that this was the right decision. If Cale wanted you in Denver, how could you even think about being anywhere else? 

Sliding your tongue against his as he kissed you, you melted against his body. You’d been so worried about having to say goodbye…the uncertainty of what the season would bring. Now, Cale would be leaving for road trips, but he’d be coming back to you each and every time. Now you were taking the next step in building a life together. 

“You just made me the happiest man ever.” He insisted as he scooped you up and carried you out to the couch, settling your knees over his lap as you sat directly beside him. 

You honestly didn’t even know how long you sat there, sharing soft kisses and whispering sweet nothings back and forth. 

Eventually you dug into just a few of the many details moving would require. Cale was going to call his agent and/or the team in the morning to figure out what was needed to get you a visa, he was perfectly fine supporting both of you until you could become licensed to work in Colorado, he absolutely did not want you to even consider selling this house, and you’d spill the news to his parents tomorrow evening - him to his dad during golf while you sat down with Laura. 

You knew you had only scratched the surface of all of these things, but yet you found yourself filled with an anxious excitement at the thought of it all coming together. Yes this was somewhat fast, but honestly it felt like something that you’d been waiting for forever all at the same time. You were confident that any other choice would be a mistake but that living with Cale, starting a family of just the two of you was right…so right. 

You’d been close to pulling Cale back to bed when he murmured that he’d be back before shifting your legs off of him and slipping out your front door. When he returned, he had his bag in one hand and a small wrapped box in the other. 

“What’s that?” You questioned, eyeing him as he flopped back down beside you. 

“Your anniversary present. Did you think I’d forget?” He questioned. 

“Cale…” You scolded softly, shaking your head. 

“Sweetheart…I’m going to spoil you sometimes…get used to it.” He declared, passing over the box. “Plus…it’s not that big.” He added, soft grin covering his face. 

Tearing the paper off of the box, you carefully pried the lid off of it. Laying on a layer of padding was a bracelet, silver in color with knots on either end. It was simple, classic, but super pretty and you immediately slipped it over your wrist. 

“It’s gorgeous, Cale. Thank you.” You whispered. 

“You like it?” Cale questioned, a nervous expression on his face. 

“Of course I do.” You assured him, twisting your head to kiss him softly. 

“Wanted to get you something you could wear everyday.” He admitted. “Plus I liked the knots.” The way Cale was rubbing the back of his neck told you everything you needed to know about the knots. After all, it wasn’t a new concept for you that he was thinking about marriage someday. The way he’d played with your ring finger during your weekend away had told you that. 

“Absolutely something I can and will wear everyday. Thank you.” You whispered. “But you keep making me feel guilty because I didn’t get you anything.” You pouted. 

“Baby…you’re the only gift I ever need.” Cale insisted, his hand coming up to cup your cheek again. “Plus you planned that whole weekend away. And you just agreed to uproot your life for me. I don’t need anything else. Truly. So don’t feel guilty.” 

“I love you.” You breathed, amazed at how secure you felt given how uneasy you’d been just a few hours ago. 

“Love you too sunshine.” Cale grinned. “Now I don’t know about you, but I’m fucking exhausted. Sleeping alone in a cold hotel room just isn’t it.” 

“Let’s go to bed then hun…” You nodded, pecking his lips before standing, pulling him up with you. “We’ve got a busy day ahead of us tomorrow after all.” 

“I know. I’m so happy you said yes.” Cale repeated once more, his arms draping around him. “Remind me to thank Taylor.” 

Though you didn’t have the context as to why Cale needed to thank his little brother, you assumed Taylor was the one that prompted all of this in some way. If that was the case, you too owed Taylor a world of thanks. 

Crawling into bed a few minutes later, you settled yourself in Cale’s arms. Soon you’d get to do this more nights than not and the idea of falling asleep next to and waking up in Cale’s arms was pure heaven. 

“Night gorgeous. Love you.” Cale murmured into your hair. 

“Love you too.” You replied, feeling safe and warm as you started drifting off to sleep.

________________

Though you weren’t waiting for a sign of the universe’s blessing to you moving to Denver, the universe seemed willing to give it anyway. 

Arriving at your office Thursday morning, you steeled your nerves and went in search of your boss, planning on giving your notice. Twenty minutes later, you were leaving her office in amazement. After discussing the circumstances behind you coming to her, she’d turned down your notice, instead offering you a slightly modified position. You’d be telecommuting: talking with clients, doing research on homes before passing off the actual tours and everything else to your colleagues. It was honestly everything you loved about the job without the crazy hours and it honestly wasn’t that much of a salary cut. It was yours until you decided otherwise and you’d immediately accepted before returning to your office to call Cale, excitement coursing through you. 

One of your major concerns with moving to Denver was becoming too reliant on Cale. And not just financially, though still having a job and being able to pay your mortgage was a big bonus in that regard. No, you also worried that he would be the only thing you had in Denver and you didn’t want to smother him. Not to mention the loneliness you’d feel while he was on the road if you didn’t have something for yourself. This was the biggest blessing in every way and it gave you the opportunity to feel even more confident in the decision you were making. 

Despite the universe’s ‘thumbs up’, you were still nervous about one thing…what Laura would think. You knew that she had been concerned about Cale moving in with you when you gave him the house key so you weren’t sure how she would take this gigantic leap you were taking. 

Leaving work that evening, you’d stopped at the store for a bottle of wine before heading over to the Makar residence. Cale had texted you about half an hour before, saying he was off to the golf course with his dad. 

Knocking on the front door, you let yourself in, finding Laura in the kitchen cleaning up dinner. 

“Hey dear.” Laura greeted. “Cale told me you would be stopping by tonight. There’s a plate of leftovers for you in the microwave.” She explained. 

“You’re the best.” You replied, quickly heating up the food while opening the bottle of wine and pouring two glasses. When the food was warm you settled down on one of the barstools at the island and dug in. Laura’s cooking was right up there with your own mother’s and you were absolutely starving. 

“So how are things?” Laura questioned, leaning against the counter across from you. 

“Good. Good. Things are good.” You murmured, pausing to lift the glass of wine to your mouth. “I um…I have something to tell you actually.” You declared, setting your fork down onto your plate. Taking a deep breath, you sent Laura a nervous smile. 

“Cale asked me to go with him to Denver and I said yes.” You spilled, the butterflies in your stomach fluttering wildly. Laura masked her expressions well and you got more and more nervous the longer it took her to respond. 

“When did this happen?” She questioned, taking a sip from her own wine glass. 

“Last night.” You explained, weary as your mind flashed back to the conversation you’d had with your mom last month. 

“Breathe Y/N.” Laura declared, a smile slowly spreading over her face. “I know my son. I would have been shocked if he didn’t ask you.” She admitted. “This is what you want?” She asked. 

“I can’t imagine not being with him.” You murmured. “I’m anxious, a little bit scared, but home just wouldn’t be home without Cale.” 

When Laura set her glass down and moved around the counter, wrapping you up in a warm hug, you felt yourself finally relax. 

“I’m assuming you’re keeping the house here.” She stated. “Whatever you need Gary and I to do, be it stop over once a week to check on things or anything else, just let us know.” 

“I will.” You agreed, a long sigh spilling from your throat. “You scared me for a minute there.” You whispered. “I was worried you were going to think this was a horrible idea.” This was such a big step you needed one set of parental support and you weren’t sure you would get it from your parents. 

“Y/N…hunny. I’m pretty sure nothing you choose to do with my son could ever be a horrible idea.” She assured you. “Though it’s true you haven’t been together long, I’d hardly call making the decision that you’re stable enough to not want to spend nine months in a long-distance relationship rash or horrible. I think we all know this isn’t like a normal relationship, that my son is going to marry you. Honestly, I’m slightly relieved to know that he won’t be alone. I know he has the team, but it makes me feel better knowing he has you as well.” 

Wiping a stray tear or two from your eyes, you pulled back from her hug feeling so much better about everything. 

“I do have to ask though…what are you going to do about work?” Laura inquired after a moment and letting out a chuckle you relayed to her what had happened that morning at work and how it seemed like this was just meant to be. 

“That’s wonderful.” She agreed. “Oh I can’t wait to come and visit now, knowing that you two are making a home together.” She gushed. It was going to be different living with Cale, but with as much time as you’d spent with him already, it was going to be the little things that you’d grow to learn when you finally started to cohabitate. 

Continuing to chat about it for a few more minutes, you finished off your dinner and the first glass of wine, pouring each of you a second as you moved into the living room. 

“I’m so glad you’re excited for us.” You admitted. “I…I don’t know how I’m going to tell mom.” 

“What do you mean?” Laura asked, her eyes crinkling in confusion. 

“She uh…she’s less than supportive about Cale and I…” You admitted. “She thinks that this is just lust driven, a summer fling, that Cale couldn’t possibly be thinking about settling down, that I’m making a mistake by getting too serious.” 

“You’re joking.” Laura insisted and when you shook your head, the look of anger on her face was one that could kill. 

“She was so concerned about me not giving up everything I’ve worked for for him. I can’t help but feel like that’s exactly what she’s going to see this as.” You explained. In reality you weren’t really giving anything up, but she would certainly see it that way. 

“Don’t you fret about your mom. She’ll come to her senses eventually.” Laura insisted. “And if she doesn’t then it’s her loss because she’s the one missing out on watching the two of you grow together, creating your own little family.” 

Though you could tell it bothered her as much as it bothered you, Laura quickly changed the topic to throwing you both an end of summer/going away party. You insisted that you didn’t need one, but Laura seemed so excited about it that you just went along. When the guys came home from their round of golf, Cale immediately came over, leaning down to kiss you and you melted into his touch. 

“You know Laur…I think they’re gonna be just fine.” Gary murmured. 

“Oh I know they are.” Laura agreed, sending you a soft wink. “What they’ve got is the real thing if I’ve ever seen it. I’m looking forward to seeing the changes Denver brings.” 

Denver was definitely going to bring changes but there wasn’t anything you couldn’t take on with Cale by your side. Every day you were falling a little bit more in love with him after all. 

**Bracelet:**


	24. Chapter 24

With only two and a half weeks before the Avs training camp started, your life felt like a whirlwind once again as you prepared for this next adventure with Cale. There was the paperwork…you’d never seen so much paperwork in your life. There was everything you needed to figure out with leaving your house empty for months on end: setting up a good security system, arranging for snow care for the winter months, purchasing a firebox large enough to hold your quilt and the few other super precious items you had that you weren’t willing to risk. 

And then there was the packing. Though you knew you wouldn’t need much, just clothes, some personal items, maybe a few books, it still felt like a massive undertaking. And it wasn’t until you had taped the final box shut that all of this felt real. You were leaving your life in Calgary to start a new one in Denver. 

In the midst of everything else, you’d said goodbye to Taylor as he got on a plane to Massachusetts for his first season at UMass Amherst, following in Cale’s footsteps. Then there was the party Laura and Gary hosted, family and close friends sending you well wishes for a Stanley Cup season and the start of your lives together. Your coworkers had also thrown you a party of sorts, wishing you safe travels and happiness in your new position. 

It was all overwhelming, you were excited and sad and a bevy of other emotions that came with big changes like this. So when you stepped foot in your house the night before you were sending Cale off on a flight to Denver with you following behind the following morning by car, you immediately paused when the smell of food cooking reached your nose. 

Setting your purse and the box from your office down, you followed the scent to find Cale standing over the stove in the kitchen, dressed down in a pair of athletic shorts and a t-shirt. 

“You’re making dinner?” You whispered softly, stepping into his side as he lifted his arm to wrap around you. 

“It’s our last night here…at least for awhile.” Cale shrugged. “Thought we should make the most of it.” Kissing his cheek, you wiped away the lone tear that had fallen as you moved to pour the remainder of the bottle of wine left in the fridge into glasses. “Why don’t you get changed and then head outside, I’ve got this.” Cale insisted, looking over at you, expression soft. 

“Okay.” You agreed, setting the glasses down before heading into your bedroom to slip into some loungewear. It was hard to believe that you only had two more nights in this house before you’d be leaving it behind. Of course you’d be back, if not while Cale was on a roadtrip or at Christmas time, then next summer for sure. It was still a bittersweet feeling, this house becoming exactly what you’d hoped it would be, a summer oasis. 

Grabbing the glasses of wine as you passed through the kitchen, you made your way outside. You’d already moved all of the outdoor furniture down into the basement, so like your first night in the house, you settled yourself back against the wall, looking out across the yard. 

It wasn’t long before Cale was handing a plate down to you before settling in beside you, his knee knocking against your own. 

“This brings back memories.” He chuckled, sending you a warm smile. “How are you doing?” He then asked, his hand reaching down to lace with your own for a moment. 

“I’m a little overwhelmed.” You admitted. “Change is hard even if it’s good change, so just bear with me okay?” This was the first time you were going to live anywhere other than Calgary and it was just a lot to process even if you were looking forward to it. 

“Whatever you need.” Cale assured you, his hand squeezing yours. “I know this has all been a lot and I reaffirm my statement that you’re superwoman because you’re handling it all with so much grace. So if you need to cry or scream or anything else, all of those feelings are valid and understandable.” 

Though Cale’s hand released your own so that you could actually eat, his body remained in close contact, his knee occasionally bumping yours lightly and his arm pressed close to your side. You didn’t talk much as you ate, but occasionally Cale would throw out a ‘remind me to show you this’ or ‘I need to take you to…’. You knew that it was his subtle way of trying to get you to focus on the excitement of the move rather than the sadness and it was beyond appreciated. 

When you’d both finished, Cale took your plate and stacked it with his beside him. He then pulled you closer to his side, draping his arm over your shoulder as his lips grazed against the top of your head. 

“You know you’re welcome to fly back home whenever you want.” He whispered. “Whether I’m on the road or not. If you get too homesick you can always come back.” 

“I know.” You breathed, just taking in the stillness of this moment with him and the way it contrasted to everything else you’d been feeling recently. 

“You’re still sure about this right?” He asked, vulnerability seeping through. Turning your head you brushed your fingers along his jaw, nodding slightly. 

“Home is wherever you are Cale. Yes this house holds so many memories already, but it also holds dreams of the future, dreams of a future with you. So yes I’m sure. It’s time to move to Denver, to build a life with you so that when we come home next summer maybe some of those dreams can come true.” 

“I have no doubt they will.” Cale murmured. “If not next summer then the summer after or the summer after that. We’ve got nothing but time sweet girl and all I want is to make all of your dreams come true.” 

“I love you.” You whispered, laying your head back down onto Cale’s shoulder. 

“Love you too sunshine.” Cale replied, his fingers brushing over your skin as the two of you watched the sun start to slowly sink beyond the horizon. When the pretty pinks and oranges and blues disappeared, you pushed yourself to your feet before bending to pick up the empty wine glasses. 

Cale followed you inside, locking the door behind you, and the two of you moved through the kitchen, washing the dinner dishes in unison. When the kitchen was clean and dishes were put away, you turned to Cale, tucking yourself against his chest. 

“Will you make love to me?” You requested. “Like you did our first night here?” Cale’s shoulders dipped and his eyes swelled with his own tears at your words. 

“Yeah sweetheart. Of course I will.” He agreed. “But if you want it like that first night, does that mean I have to wear a condom?” His words reached their intended goal of making you giggle, and you shook your head at him. 

“I think you know the answer to that, you dork.” Guiding him back to the bedroom, you kissed him softly, pouring all of the love you felt for him into that one kiss. Just like that first night, Cale’s hands slowly pulled your shirt off of your body and pushed your shorts over your hips. 

Then he laid you down in the center of the bed, his mouth repeating the trails his hands had made. You couldn’t help but shiver under his touch because just like that first night, he was making you feel so so wanted and loved. 

“My beautiful girl.” Cale breathed, his mouth peppering kisses up along your right arm until he reached your wrist laying limply beside your head. “You’re all I want.” He murmured, his lips featherlight on your pulse point. “You’re all I need.” He added after repeating the action along your left arm. When his lips trailed up further, pressing against your left ring finger, you felt your heart stop and then start, pounding heavily in your chest. “Gonna make you my wife someday.” He promised, placing two more soft kisses to the same spot before turning his head to kiss you gently but deeply. 

As he kissed you, Cale’s fingers slipped behind your back to undo your bra, easing the fabric off of you and onto the floor. “God I love you.” He whispered, his gaze lidded as he peered down at you beneath him. Taking just a moment to pull his shirt off over his head, Cale dropped down your body, latching onto your breasts until your nipples were pebbled and hard. It wasn’t until he felt you shiver from that action, that he dipped between your thighs, sliding your underwear down over your hips. 

“Just relax and let go for me tonight sweetheart. I’m gonna take care of you.” He swore, his lips teasing lightly over your stomach as his thumb slipped between your legs to rub circles against your clit. “You’re always so wet for me.” Cale hummed happily, grinning up at you as first one then two fingers pressed inside you, his thumb not losing rhythm for even a moment. 

“Look at me sweet girl.” Cale breathed as he kissed the inside of each of your thighs. “I want you to watch me as I make you fall apart, okay.” Again, just like that first night, there was no rush to any of his movements. The only difference now was that he knew your body better, knew exactly what would make you cum. 

With his long fingers brushing your g-spot each time they curled against your slick walls, it wasn’t long before you were whining, your hips arching off the bed. 

“Eyes on me love.” Cale reminded, alerting you to the fact that your eyes had fluttered closed. Looking down at him again, you saw the smirk on his face as he scissored his fingers. “Let go sweet girl.” Cale urged, his thumb picking up its pace against your swollen clit. 

A breathless gasp spilled from your throat as Cale pulled your orgasm from you, working you through it with precision, a skill he’d gained over the course of your relationship. Sliding his fingers from you, he lifted them up to your lips, urging you to lick your fluids off them. You did taste sweet, just like Cale had said that first night, but having tasted the two of you together before, you couldn’t help but miss that taste in comparison. Once his hand was clean, he settled back above you, his tongue diving into your mouth as he kissed you. 

“I love watching you cum for me.” Cale murmured, his hips grinding down on yours gently. “So beautiful.” He smirked, dimples showing as he lowered himself down your body for a second time, this time wrapping his hands around your thighs as he ducked down to swipe his tongue through your folds. 

“Cale. Fuck.” You whimpered, your hips rolling down against his face. Still sensitive from your previous orgasm, Cale’s mouth on your core was almost too much and he finally had to drape an arm over your waist to keep you still against him. 

“Give me another.” He mumbled, pulling back to breathe. “Cum for me again sweetheart.” His head dove back into your core, his tongue slipping inside of you and though you tried to keep watching him, eventually your vision blurred and your head fell back against the pillows as a second orgasm tore through your body. 

Even as you cursed and attempted to shove at Cale’s head because it was all too much, he continued to devour you, drawing a sharp third orgasm from your body that you hadn’t expected. You were heaving by the time Cale pulled away, his face soaked with your fluids. 

“Holy fuck Cale.” You gasped, your body tingling from head to toe. Cale climbed off the bed for just a moment, dipping into the bathroom for a washcloth to wipe his face on before he settled back in beside you, his hard length poking at your hip. 

“You just squirted sweet girl…” He stated causing your eyes to go wide. You knew that that orgasm had felt different but you hadn’t realized why, but now heat was flooding your cheeks as you threw a hand over your face. 

“Hey…don’t hide from me.” Cale insisted, lacing his hand with yours as he pulled it away and turned your head so that he could kiss you. “Was hot as hell. Totally going to aim to repeat that next time I go down on you.” The cocky look on his face backed up his words but you still buried your head into his shoulder for a moment as he rolled back on top of you. 

When he tilted your head up to his again, he cupped the entire side of your face in his palm, his thumb smoothing over your skin. 

“Y/N…c’mon…” He breathed. “Nothing to be embarrassed about. I wanted you to give into me completely and you did just that. Frankly you stroked my ego by cumming that hard all over me.” He teased, his lips teasing over yours gently. “So relax sweet girl. Let me make love to you properly.” 

“You’re something else.” You declared, shaking your head. “And I love you for it.” You added, pulling him down into another soft kiss. 

“Love you too sunshine, more than you know.” Cale replied, shifting backward to shed his remaining clothing. As he settled back over you, he reached for one of the spare pillows you kept near the bed, sliding it under your hips. “Let me know if you like this angle.” He mumbled, kissing you again as he ground his hips against yours, his dick sliding along your folds. 

Finally, he lined himself up, his tip just teasing at your entrance. The way he was making you wait was driving you crazy and you attempted to roll your hips up into his, pouting when he stopped you. 

“Relax sweet girl. Just feel.” He whispered as his thumb brushed over your lips, forcing you to stop pouting. “Feel the slight pressure of me against you. Focus on the feel of me sliding inside you. Don’t rush, just relax and enjoy.” With your eyes locked on his deep blue ones, you took a deep breath and just settled into the way he felt above you, the weight of him, the faint pressure of him where you needed him most. 

Slowly…slower than ever before, Cale slipped inch by inch inside of you, pausing along the way. The slow drag of him against your walls made you whimper because you could feel each and every ridge of him as he moved. 

“Oh!” You gasped, watching as his face twisted in pleasure responding in turn to your noises. Everything he was doing felt impossibly languid and as he finally settled inside of you fully, you could barely breathe due to the intensity of it all. 

“Shit sweetheart…I can feel you fluttering around me already.” Cale grunted, his tongue slipping out from between his lips. “You’re so warm…feels so good.” With your hips tilted up, he was nestled deeply inside of you, but not uncomfortably so and you felt so full. 

“Cale…” You pleaded, fresh sweat forming in droplets all over your skin. In response to his name, Cale started slowly rolling and grinding his hips against yours, his mouth pressing against yours as the heat grew between you. The slow, lazy pace allowed you to feel every single thing. And not just the way he felt inside you, you could feel the flex of his thighs as he moved, the fine hairs of his happy trail brushing against your stomach, the way the sweat dripped down from his body onto yours. 

In a way, the lack of sensation had sent you into sensory overload and as you moaned out that you were going to cum, Cale’s pubic bone ground down against your clit and you immediately clung to him as your fourth orgasm of the night flooded over you leaving you gasping for breath. The intensity of sensation was only increased when as you started to come down, you heard Cale moan your name as he spilled inside of you, pumping you full of his semen. 

“Oh my god. Oh my god.” You repeated like a mantra as Cale settled more of his weight on top of you, having lost some of the strength in his arms. Carding your fingers through his hair, you felt your body go limp with exhaustion. Sex with Cale was one thing, but making love was truly something else entirely and it left you spellbound each and every time. 

“I don’t know how, but this gets better every single time.” You muttered, your fingers sliding down along Cale’s back. 

“It’s because it’s you.” Cale’s voice was muffled by the pillow but you heard him loud and clear and you nodded, brushing your nose against his temple. 

“It’s us.” You agreed. “You good hun?” You questioned, not used to Cale being so out of it after sex. 

“Yeah.” He agreed. “Just gimme a minute.” 

“Take your time.” You assured him. Though you knew you needed to separate and clean up, the feeling of him inside you, your thighs burning from the awkward position, was beyond welcome. This was your future. More nights like this. More nights without sex, just cuddled together in the bed you’d share. This was worth all of the stress, all of the sadness, this was why you were moving to Denver. He was why you were moving to Denver. 

And though you had to change the sheets before falling asleep that night, tossing all evidence of your lovemaking into the washing machine, the feelings lingered inside of you and those feelings were all you needed to get through the next few days. 

You went with Cale to get his things and to say both of your goodbyes to his parents, because frankly you couldn’t handle two sets of goodbyes. Both Laura and Gary had hugged you tightly, whispering for you to take care of Cale and to let him take care of you, reminding you that they were only a phone call and/or a plane ride away. 

You’d cried as you left their driveway to take Cale to the airport and you’d cried as you saw him off even though you’d see him in less than 72 hours. You’d cried as you treated yourself to dinner at your favorite restaurant and as you ate a pint of ice cream in the exact spot you and Cale had said your first ‘I love you’s’. You’d cried as you crawled into your bed for the final time alone and you’d cried as you loaded all of your boxes into the car. You’d cried as you did one final check over everything before locking up and climbing into the driver’s seat, sixteen hours of driving ahead of you. 

But by the time you had pulled out of your neighborhood the tears had stopped. Blue skies were there to guide you to Denver, to Cale, to the rest of your life. The changes you were making were big, but they were good…the best. And as you listened to your song play over the radio you realized that you couldn’t wait to find out what other changes awaited you in Denver. 


	25. Chapter 25

“Y/N’s pregnant.” 

Leaning against the doorway to your shared bedroom, you felt a smile spread across your face as your boyfriend spilled the news out of frustration, a response to his mother’s unnecessary concern. 

“What?” Laura whispered, her voice cracking. The expression on her face was one of shock and awe as she just stared at Cale. Shivering as a chill ran up your spine, you turned to adjust the thermostat, cranking up the heat to ward off the mid-November chill. 

++

Cale’s parents had arrived in Denver yesterday afternoon and though you’d had dinner with them, neither you nor Cale were sure whether or how to share everything that had changed since you’d seen them last. You’d mentioned that the two of you were thinking about buying a house here which had been met with some confusion but otherwise you kept things fairly light conversation wise. A part of you had expected Laura to question you not drinking, but when she hadn’t said anything you assumed she hadn’t picked up on it at all. 

When you’d crawled into bed last night, you and Cale had still been undecided on whether to share the news yet but when you woke up this morning, it seemed like hiding probably wasn’t going to be an option. Of course, though you rarely experienced morning sickness, today of all days it had to hit you like a truck. Cale had been the doting father-to-be that he always was, holding your hair back and massaging your lower back gently. When the nausea didn’t begin to ebb like it normally did, he’d called your coworker to move all of your appointments for the day before settling you back into bed with some tea, crackers, and a wastebasket. Only with your insistence that you would be fine did he head off to practice, leaving you to doze off again. 

You’d woken up a couple hours later to Cale perched on the side of the bed, his fingers dragging lightly over your stomach. 

“You feeling any better?” He’d questioned, concern flickering across his face. “Think maybe you could use something to eat?” 

Stretching, you sat up just a little, testing out how your stomach would react to the movement. It didn’t twist or turn like it had earlier and you let out a breath of relief, reaching out to pull Cale into a quick kiss. 

“Heat me up some of the leftover soup from the freezer?” You requested. You knew Laura and Gary were coming over to spend the afternoon with the two of you, but you were fairly certain that your stomach would be unable to handle whatever lunch they brought. 

“Course sweetheart.” Cale agreed, leaving you to slowly make your way up and out of bed. 

The minute she’d walked through the door, you heard Laura question Cale about why he was cooking when he knew that they were bringing lunch. 

“Because Y/N wants soup.” Cale replied, pulling the defrosted soup from the microwave so that he could dump it into a pot to finish warming. 

Laura had expressed her confusion stating that you and Cale had both known that they were bringing one of your favorites. 

“Mom…she wasn’t feeling well this morning okay.” He sighed. “Soup is easy on the stomach, that is not.” 

“Is she sick? Cale why didn’t you tell us? If she’s not feeling well we can go find something else to do.” Laura had pressed. 

“She’s fine now.” Cale replied, his voice gaining a little bit of an edge that signaled his annoyance. 

“Seriously Cale, if Y/N isn’t feeling well she should be resting, not having to worry about entertaining us.” Laura continued. 

“Mom. Relax.” Cale declared. Immediately Laura started speaking again and the next words out of his mouth were the ones you’d been hiding. 

++

With the silence starting to become uncomfortable in the kitchen, you made your way out from your spot in the doorway, nestling up to Cale’s side as he stared at his mom. Your sudden presence seemed to startle Laura and Gary and they ran their eyes back and forth between you and their son. 

“You’re pregnant?” Laura questioned, tears welling in her eyes. Nodding, you took a step back to pull the ultrasound photos out from the magnet on the side of the fridge. Setting them down in front of her, you pecked Cale’s cheek, before turning to adjust the temperature on your soup so that it didn’t burn. 

“How do you feel about being a grandma?” You questioned after a moment, laughing as she launched herself around the kitchen island, pulling you into a hug. 

“You’re pregnant. You’re really pregnant.” She choked out in disbelief. 

“Yeah mom. I’m pregnant.” You stated. 

“Oh my lord.” Laura breathed and when she pulled away you could see the tears streaming down her cheeks. “This wasn’t planned was it?” She questioned, her slight confusion returning. 

“No, it wasn’t planned.” Cale voiced from behind you. 

“But you’re happy?” She confirmed, looking past you to her son. 

“We’re so happy.” Cale assured her. “Best surprise ever.” 

The way he looked at you sent you back to the night he was referring to a month ago. 

++

Cale had been away on one of the first roadtrips of the season when you’d found out the news. 

With moving and then trying to get settled in in your new home, you’d forgotten you were due for your birth control shot. Finding a local clinic, you made an appointment to go down and get it taken care of. You’d submitted to the requested urine test not thinking anything of it. It wasn’t until a nurse came into your room informing you that they couldn’t give you the shot that anything at all seemed out of place. 

“Wait…what do you mean? Why can’t you give me the shot?” You remembered asking. 

When she’d explained that she couldn’t give you the shot because you were pregnant, your jaw had dropped, your hand drifting down to your stomach. And though you didn’t think they had lied, you took the paperwork the nurse offered you before rushing to the nearest pharmacy where you’d purchased three different pregnancy tests. 

An hour later you were sitting on the bathroom floor staring at various phrases or symbols all signalling that you were definitely expecting - ‘3+ weeks’ one test in particular read. 

You knew you couldn’t be much further along than that, you’d gotten your period shortly after arriving in Denver. You were certain of that because you’d forgotten to pack anything and Cale had had to run to the store on his way home from camp. 

Though your initial reaction beyond disbelief was joy, you were worried about how Cale would take the news. You’d only been together for 5 months and while he’d expressed that he’d be open to having kids if the situation was right…you just didn’t know. 

It had taken you almost 24 hours to come to the conclusion that you just had to trust that Cale would be as happy as you were. This baby was part of both of you and it wasn’t like things between you were anything but good. Knowing that Cale would be home the following night, you set to work on figuring out how to tell him. Heading out to the store you found a retro looking Avalanche sleeper. You’d stopped into a second hand book store while you were out, looking more for something for you to read than anything else but you’d stumbled upon the children’s book ‘goodnight hockey’ and it seemed like the perfect addition to the little package you were putting together. 

Wrapping up the sleeper and book with one of the pregnancy tests, you sat down trying to think about what you wanted to say to Cale with the card. It had come to you as you were going to bed and after writing it down, you tucked the card back into the envelope writing Cale’s name on the front. 

The next day was the longest wait of your life but you were determined to tell Cale when he got home, the secret you’d been hiding for two days already eating at you. It was late…really late and you’d moved from the couch to the kitchen to make yourself a cup of hot chocolate when you heard Cale’s key in the door. 

As he stumbled into the kitchen he seemed surprised that you were still awake, but he’d leaned in to kiss you quickly. Only then did he notice the package on the counter, his eyebrows furrowed at the sight of it. 

“What’s that?” He questioned, shrugging off his suit jacket and draping it over the back of the barstool. 

“A present. For you.” You murmured softly, sending him a sneaky smile as you poured boiling water into your mug on the counter. 

“My birthday isn’t for two weeks sweetheart…can’t it wait?” He asked, leaning against the counter. 

“No, it can’t.” You insisted. “Open it now.” Cale eyed you for a minute before immediately reaching for the wrapping paper, causing you to glare at him in disbelief. 

“Who taught you how to open presents?” You exclaimed. “Open the card first…” Cale rolled his eyes playfully before grabbing the card off the front of the box, slipping the little note card out of the envelope. 

_Daddy hopes I get mommy’s giggles,_

_Mommy hopes I get daddy’s rosy cheeks,_

_No matter what I’m going to be perfect,_

_You’ll see for yourself in about 36 weeks._

You watched as his eyes glazed over, his brain struggling to process given the late hour. Setting the card aside, he tore into the paper on the box frantically, pulling the lid off to reveal all of the goodies tucked inside. You watched, your bottom lip pulled between your teeth, as Cale bypassed the pregnancy test instead pulling the sleeper from the box. Just as quickly though, he reached back inside, his jaw dropping as the stick with the word ‘pregnant’ stared back at him. 

“We’re having a baby?” The words spilled from his lips as tears rolled down his cheeks. “You’re serious?”

“I’m pregnant Cale.” You confirmed. “You’re gonna be a dad.” Closing the few steps between you, Cale wrapped his arms around you, spinning you once before burying his head into your neck. 

“I can’t…” He mumbled into your skin. “You’re sure?” 

“I’m sure.” You insisted. “3 home pregnancy tests and a clinic test all confirm.” Although Cale seemed happy, his lack of an official reaction was starting to worry you slightly. When he kissed you though, you took that as a good sign, carding your fingers through his hair. 

“Please tell me you’re okay with this…” You whispered, shifting your fingers to wipe the tears from his cheeks. “…because I know this wasn’t planned and it happened sooner than I think we were expecting…” 

“We’re having a baby.” Cale repeated, his tone awestruck. “Fuck sweetheart…of course I’m okay with this.” He breathed, shaking his head as if to pull him out of the daze he was in. “You’re having my baby.” He stated, his grin growing. “I’m shocked but…good shocked.” Kissing you again gently, Cale pulled back and immediately dropped to his knees, his hands sliding across your lower stomach. 

This was the kind of reaction you’d hoped for, better than you’d hoped for even, and you felt your own tears fall as Cale nuzzled against your stomach, kissing gently over the skin there through your shirt. 

“Baby says happy early birthday daddy.” You whispered, staring down at him. 

++ 

You’d spent the rest of that night talking about your surprise blessing, Cale’s palm never leaving your stomach. It had been perfect, just perfect. 

“Oh this is so wonderful.” Laura exclaimed. “How far along are you?” She pressed, her eyes drifting down to your where your baby bump would soon be growing. 

“8 weeks.” You replied. “So still very early but the doctor says everything looks good. We’re due mid-june.” You explained, laughing as Laura expressed her happiness by bouncing up and down. 

She hugged you again before moving to wrap Cale in her arms, the two of them whispering to each other, smiles on their faces. With his wife having expressed her excitement, Gary slid around the counter and pulled you into a hug as well. 

“Congratulations. Can’t wait to meet my grandbaby.” He expressed, squeezing you a second time before moving to pat Cale on the back. You knew Cale needed this moment with his parents, so you turned your attention to the pot of soup bubbling away on the stovetop. 

This year has been full of so many secrets: the disaster around Cale’s pregnancy scare with Sara, your exchanged feelings in March, dating for two months without anyone knowing, moving to Denver, and now the fact that your little family is growing. 

And though the baby was going to remain a secret to some people for a little while longer, one thing was absolutely not a secret: you were in love with your best friend and he was in love with you. Your journey together was only just beginning. 

**Cale’s early birthday present:**

  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for joining me on this journey...keep your eyes peeled for the upcoming sequel.


End file.
